If you grew up in Australia, you probably know the feeling: a sudden rush of air behind your head, the sharp clack of a beak, and a frantic dash down the footpath with your arms over your head. Every spring, swooping magpies become one of the country’s favourite topics of conversation. So why do magpies swoop, why do some seem to have it in for you while ignoring the person behind you, and what actually works to stay safe?
Why magpies swoop
Magpies swoop to protect their chicks. Griffith University’s Professor Darryl Jones, who has studied magpies for decades and wrote the book Magpie Alert, says swooping is entirely about male magpies trying to keep what they see as threats away from their nest, and that it happens only while there are chicks in it, as he told Broadsheet. Once the chicks leave the nest, the swooping stops.
Interestingly, Jones says swooping humans is not really about territory. A magpie chases other magpies out of its territory, but when it swoops a person, it is just trying to keep them away from the small patch around its nest, as he explained to the University of South Australia. That patch is usually within about 100 metres of the nest, according to Western Australia’s Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions. Most swooping is bluff: the bird flies low and fast, clacking its beak as it passes, to scare you off. Actual strikes are less common, but they do happen.
When is magpie swooping season?
Swooping season usually runs from about August to November, depending on where you live, with September and October the peak in many areas. Each individual magpie’s swooping only lasts a few weeks, while its chicks are in the nest; in Western Australia, the state’s biodiversity department says nesting season runs from about August to October. Because birds nest at slightly different times, the season as a whole stretches out over a couple of months. [ADD when you usually notice swooping start where you live.]
Most magpies never swoop
The reassuring news is that the vast majority of magpies leave people alone. Jones’s research has found that only around 10% of magpies ever swoop humans, and it is almost always the male of a breeding pair. As he puts it, if every magpie swooped, Australia would barely be liveable, according to the St George and Sutherland Shire Leader. One of the stranger findings from his work is that the males that attack people actually have lower testosterone than males that do not, as he told Australian Geographic, so it is not simply a matter of the most aggressive birds lashing out.
Why does a magpie pick on you?
If it feels personal, it may well be. Swooping magpies are surprisingly selective. About half of them only go after pedestrians, and many of those target just one or two particular people, while the other half will swoop every walker, cyclist and postie that comes near, the Leader reports. Some specialise in cyclists; others, inexplicably, only chase posties.
Magpies are also remarkably good at recognising individual people. Research has shown they can recognise at least 100 different people, according to Wikipedia’s summary, and Melissa Murray of the Australian Museum told Yahoo News Australia that magpies can remember up to 40 faces and will repeatedly target people who come near their nest. Many experts believe the targeting is often learned from a bad experience: someone throwing a stick, a child poking at a nest, or a dog chasing them. Professor Chris Daniels of the University of South Australia told Australian Geographic that particular breeds of dogs and boys are often targeted for this reason, and that magpies can remember individuals across a lifespan of 20 to 25 years. So if a magpie seems to have it in for you, it may be holding a grudge from years ago, or from someone who looks a bit like you.
The Australian magpie is not really a magpie
Our magpie is not actually related to the black-and-white magpies of Europe, which belong to the crow family. Early European settlers named it after the bird it looked like back home, but the Australian magpie belongs to a family called Artamidae, alongside butcherbirds and currawongs, and its closest relative is the black butcherbird, according to Wikipedia. It is also one of Australia’s most accomplished songbirds, with a remarkably complex song, which is worth remembering when you are ducking for cover.
How dangerous is magpie swooping?
Most swoops are just a fright, but they can cause real injuries. The most serious risk is to the eyes; hospital emergency department records show the eye is the most commonly injured area, according to Western Australia’s biodiversity department. There have been several cases of children losing sight in an eye, including a four-year-old boy blinded in one eye in Toowoomba in 2011, as Australian Geographic reported. Cyclists face a second danger: being startled and crashing. Deaths are extremely rare, but Australian Geographic notes that three magpie-related deaths have been reported since 1946. Swooping is common, too: in one recent season, the crowd-sourced Magpie Alert website had recorded more than 2,000 swoops and 264 injuries by the time SBS News reported on it, with far more reports along the east coast than the west.
Magpies and the law
However frustrating a swooping magpie is, it is a protected native bird, and harming magpies or disturbing their nests is illegal, as Australian Geographic notes. In Western Australia, for example, all native fauna is protected under state law, and dealing with problem birds can require a licence, as the state’s biodiversity department explains. If a magpie is genuinely dangerous, such as one repeatedly striking people near a school or playground, contact your local council or state wildlife authority. They can put up warning signs and, in rare cases, licensed handlers may relocate a particularly aggressive bird.
How to avoid being swooped
- Take another route. The simplest and most effective option is to avoid the area for a few weeks until the chicks leave the nest. Experts consistently say this is the best advice, and the University of South Australia’s Chris Daniels told Australian Geographic it is better than any hat. Look out for council warning signs at known hotspots.
- Walk, do not run. Move calmly through and away from the area. Running, yelling and waving your arms can earn you extra swoops.
- Keep an eye on the bird. Magpies usually swoop from behind. Jones suggests that if you can spot the magpie, look it in the eye and back away, as he told the Northern Daily Leader.
- Protect your head and eyes. A hat, helmet or umbrella helps, and sunglasses give your eyes some protection. The classic Australian ice-cream-container hat is mostly a joke, but anything that covers your head is better than nothing.
- Get off the bike. If you are cycling, dismount and walk your bike through the area, and always wear a helmet.
- Never fight back. Throwing things or swinging at a magpie can make it more aggressive for the rest of the season, and it may remember you next year. It is also illegal to harm them.
- Do not try to bribe them. Some people swear that being a friendly, familiar face helps, and there is evidence that magpies are less likely to swoop people they know. But do not feed them; wildlife authorities discourage it, and the wrong food can harm them.
- Report it. Tell your local council about dangerous birds, and log swoops on the Magpie Alert website or your state’s swooping bird map so others can avoid the area.
If you are hurt
Most swoops cause nothing worse than a fright, but if a magpie does strike you, wash any cuts thoroughly and make sure your tetanus vaccination is up to date. Australian Geographic notes that one of the very few recorded magpie-related deaths, in 1946, was a boy who died of tetanus. Any injury to the eye, even one that seems minor, should be checked by a doctor or at an emergency department straight away.
A few weeks a year
It is easy to think of magpies as the villains of spring, but swooping lasts only a few weeks, and it comes from a parent doing everything it can to protect its young. For the rest of the year, magpies are among the most intelligent and musical birds you will find in any Australian suburb. Give them space while the chicks are in the nest, and they make excellent neighbours. If you are interested in more bird behaviour, my post on why birds fly south for the winter looks at the long-distance migrants that arrive in Australia each spring, around the same time the magpies start swooping.
This article is general information only. If you have an eye injury or a wound that becomes red, swollen or painful, see a doctor. In an emergency, call 000.
Sources
- Broadsheet: How to stay safe this swooping season (Darryl Jones)
- University of South Australia, On the Record: Australia’s social, yet savage songbirds
- St George and Sutherland Shire Leader: Ten per cent of magpies are giving the rest a bad name
- Australian Geographic: Everything you need to know about magpie season
- Australian Geographic: Black-and-white bandits, magpie swooping season is here
- Australian Geographic: Magpie attack in Queensland leaves boy needing surgery
- Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (WA): Swooping magpies (PDF)
- Yahoo News Australia: Man suffers injuries after magpie attacks both his eyes
- SBS News: Magpie swooping season is here, but not all humans are equal
- Wikipedia: Australian magpie