North GroundHuntNorth Ground Hunt — return to North Ground
Species authority page

Black-billed magpie

Pica hudsonia · Crows · Migratory game birds

Black-billed magpie (Pica hudsonia): Unmistakable in most areas; 45-60 cm. Green and blue gloss on the wings and long tail. This profile does not establish whether taking it is legal anywhere.

Check rules for a place and dateOpen the black-billed magpie map

Certified rules currently represented in Hunt: coverage in development. This is coverage, not a legal answer.

Black-billed magpie perched on a dead branch
Photo by anish lakkapragada on Unsplash
Scientific name
Pica hudsonia
Family
Corvidae
In North America
Native
Range
Resident from south-coastal and southern Alaska through western Canada to eastern California, southern Nevada and Utah, northern New Mexico and western Kansas and Oklahoma.
Biology

How to identify it

Unmistakable in most areas; 45-60 cm. [1][2]

Green and blue gloss on the wings and long tail. [1][2]

Big white wing patches flash in flight. [1][2]

In California, see Yellow-billed Magpie. [1][2]

Compared with the yellow-billed magpie: Found in California; the Black-billed has a black bill (Audubon says to see Yellow-billed there). [1][2]

Field notes

  • Identification Confirm a black-billed magpie before you act. Compared with the yellow-billed magpie: Found in California; the Black-billed has a black bill (Audubon says to see Yellow-billed there).[1][2]
Field knowledge

Where it lives

Semi-open country in the west: rangeland, conifers, streamsides, forest edges and farms; most common in streamside groves in open terrain. Avoids unbroken forest, treeless grasslands and extreme desert. [1][2]

Field knowledge

How it behaves

Mostly a permanent resident, with some upslope movement in fall and a few moving south or downslope in winter [1][2]

Forages mostly by walking on the ground, flipping items with the bill; may take ticks from elk and other animals [1][2]

Omnivorous, eating more insects than most crows plus carrion, rodents, eggs and nestlings, with more berries, seeds and nuts in winter [1][2]

Rapid, nasal mag? mag? mag? or yak yak yak [1][2]

Regulatory handoff

Where it is listed for removal or nuisance take

These authorities list this species as nuisance, invasive or unprotected wildlife that may be taken. This is not a game season.

Where legal take is listed

Being listed is not an open season. Seasons, zones, licences, methods and limits decide whether this animal may be taken on a given day and place — check Hunt or the authority before you go. Listings read 2026-09-30.

Geospatial intelligence

Where it is found

Resident from south-coastal and southern Alaska through western Canada to eastern California, southern Nevada and Utah, northern New Mexico and western Kansas and Oklahoma.

Biology

Sources

Every claim above is attributed to one of these published sources.

  1. National Audubon Society · reviewed 2026-09-30

    National Audubon Society

  2. NatureServe · reviewed 2026-09-30

    NatureServe