Re: Fw: [canberrabirds] Noisy Magpies

[martin butterfield <>]

Denis

In my experience at Carwoola the local Magpies have no hesitation in having a shot at two Eagles soaring together in calm conditions.  They seem to do a tag-team routine between families as the eagles pass from above one territory to another.  

When it is windy the eagles are generally travelling rather faster - like surfing down the face of a wave rather than cruising 'out the back waiting for the big one'.  They don't attract as much aggravation and I have wondered if its because they don't stay in a territory long enough to give offence.

Martin

On Wed, Mar 10, 2010 at 9:35 AM, Denis Wilson <> wrote:

Dear COG Chat Line

 

Further to Martin's observation and Philip's comment, I had an unusual "Magpie-free" visit by a pair of Eagles yesterday - they were present for some 35 minutes in total.

• "Today was a clear sky, but with a very gusty south-westerly wind. The rear of my house (and the back deck) looks south-west, over a long sloping gully. So, when the wind blows up the valley it is perfect for Eagles to be able to soar and circle, rise up then stall and dive. Good fun acrobatic stuff of which Wedge-tailed Eagles are the masters.
• "Interestingly, at no stage were they challenged by the resident Magpie clan. Whether this is because even the Maggies are wary of taking on two Eagles together, or whether it was simply that the strong wind upsets the Magpies (which were quiet all day long) I cannot say for sure. But the observation is there - no challenge to these great birds from the Magpies. Normally one can usually expect 3 to 6 Magpies to sound the alarm when any Bird of Prey enters their territory."
• (from last night's blog posting).
• http://peonyden.blogspot.com/2010/03/windy-day-blows-for-eagles.html

So, there is a double question in my mind - were the local Magpies put off their normal boisterous defence of territory by the wind, or were two Wedgies just too challenging for them? Of course, there is one other factor, the Eagles, which are a bit slow and ponderous in light wind conditions, are much more agile in strong winds, and so would be far better able to manoeuvre in the event of a magpie attack. So, perhaps the wind tips the odds in favour of the Eagles - and Magpies might well understand that, and do not bother to hassle them on windy days? 

 

Comments welcome.

Several interesting pictures on the Blog - one with the Eagle's legs down and claws open. Most unusual, in my experience.

 

Cheers

 

Denis
www.peonyden.blogspot.com