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Driving me nuts

FireFire North LondonPosts: 17,116
in Wildlife gardening
I have a gang of magpies on my roof that sound like a bunch of football hooligans with rattles. They seem to be giving alarm calls all day and night, starting at about 4am. The birds do not seem otherwise disturbed or agitated. They just hunker down on the aerial on the roof near by bedroom window all day and do this.  At night I am dreaming that Velociraptors are coming to get me.

Is it an alarm call? 

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  • Valley GardenerValley Gardener Rhondda ValleyPosts: 2,687
    Same here,only it's Jackdaws! What a racket,next door put bread out for them and now we've seen a rat in his garden today!
    The whole truth is an instrument that can only be played by an expert.
  • B3B3 South East LondonPosts: 24,023
    edited June 2018
    They're the magpie equivalent of the louche, disaffected unattached youth hanging around on street corners.  
    However, I've seen The Birds so I know I might be wrong :o
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • FireFire North LondonPosts: 17,116
    You're right. I've asked them politely to be louche somewhere else. They chuckled. 'Go and smoke your spliffs somewhere else' I shouted. They opened another six pack. Sigh.
  • wild edgeswild edges The north west of south east WalesPosts: 8,847
    Fire said:

    Is it an alarm call? 

    Probably newly fledged birds keeping in touch with their parents or begging for food. It's about the right time of year for it anyway. I recommend reading 'Corvus. A life with birds' and you'll look at corvids in a whole new light.

    I get jackdaws doing the same on my roof at first light. I'm sure they deliberately do it to wake me up as feeding the birds is usually my first move in the morning while the kettle boils.
    Tradition is just peer pressure from dead people
  • josusa47josusa47 Posts: 3,531
    My jackdaws perched on the neighbours' washing line and crapped on their clean laundry while waiting their turn at the suet feeder.  I had to take the feeder down.  At least they didn't disturb our rest. If your magenpies are greeting the dawn, at least you can look forward to darker mornings.
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  • B3B3 South East LondonPosts: 24,023
    My husband said he watched a group of magpies taking it in turns to slide down a pile of sand yesterday.
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • FireFire North LondonPosts: 17,116
    toddlers?
  • B3B3 South East LondonPosts: 24,023
    They definitely seemed to be playing
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • josusa47josusa47 Posts: 3,531
    edited June 2018
    At my mum's last house, she had a pieris in the middle of the lawn.  Five magpies, who seemed to be parents and fledglings, spent a good 20 minutes dancing in circles around the pieris, at the same time picking up fallen leaves and tossing them in the air, or passing them to each other. They were good enough to be on Strictly.

    Come to think of it, it was after our supper and still light, so it would have been about this time of year.
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