PICA.
Black-and-white Crow-like birds with long, graduated tail ; 1st primary sickle-shaped ; food, worms, snails, acorns, eggs, small mammals and birds, rarely carrion ; nest large, domed, in trees or bushes ; eggs pale bluish white or yellowish olive, spotted or blotched with purplish grey or greenish brown.
Pica pica pica (L.). MAGPIE. Fr. Pie ordinaire ; Ger. Elster ; Ital. Cecca ; Swed. Skata.
S 9 Black, with green and violet reflections ; a grey or dull white bar on rump ; scapulars and abdomen white ; thighs and under tail coverts black. Bill, legs and feet black. Wing 192-195, 9 182-187. Tarsus 45-52. Bill 30-36.
Resident.—Europe generally (including British Isles), except Spain and Portugal and extreme N.E. of Russia ; also W. Asia
(Asia Minor to Persia).
P. pica bactriana Bonaparte. Rump band very marked, mostly white. Wing 210-227 (H.). A N. Asian race, which is found to the west in the Ural Mountains. Two specimens from Petchora, N.E. Russia, in Harvie-Brown collection belong to this form. Wing 6 217, 9 210.
P. pica melanota Brehm. Back and rump black, or rump band very indistinctly marked.
Resident.—Spain and Portugal.
P. pica mauritanica Malherbe. Rump entirely black ; behind eye a naked cobalt blue patch ; size smaller. Wing 155-i65 Resident.—N.W. Africa, Tunis to Morocco.