6 The Black-billed Magpie in Ontario David H. Elder The Black-billed Magpie (Pica hud­ American Bison (Bison bison) that sonia) is a spectacular, long-tailed, through death by predation, dis­ black and white corvid (Figure 1) ease, accident and old age provided that is found in western North a constant food source. America from Alaska south to New In Ontario, it is a fairly recent Mexico and Arizona (Sibley 2000). colonizer in the northwestern part Its Canadian range extends from of the province and breeds mainly extreme western Ontario through in two separate areas, one west of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Fort Frances and one west of British Columbia and the Yukon Dryden (Figure 2). Both are exten­ (Godfrey 1986). The original range sive agricultural areas that have of the species likely coincided with been developed since the late 1800s the great central North American and early 1900s; farmland carved prairies populated by huge herds of out of the forested wilderness. Figure 1: The Black-billed Magpie is a recent colonist to Ontario. Photo by George K. Peck. ONTARIO BIRDS APRIL 2006 7 r:: r:: co 0 ~ Figure 2: Northwestern Ontario, showing the two main breeding areas of the Black­ billed Magpie in the province, near Dryden and Fort FranceslRainy River (hatched areas). Map by Andrew Jano. Nesting (Salix spp.) growing under The first documented Black-billed Trembling Aspen (Populus tremu­ Magpie nests (four) in Ontario loides). Occasionally, they are were found by John Lamey, A. placed in a tall tree, well above Gray, B. Duncan and W. Wilson in a ground, a location that is favoured small patch of aspen woodland in the more western part of the about 10 km northeast of Rainy species' range (Figure 4). Magpies River on 6 July 1980 (Lamey 1981). very often place their nests close to Magpies build large, conspicu­ human dwellings or farm buildings. ous nests. The nest consists of a Nest construction is usually com­ large oval mass of sticks in which a pleted from mid-April to mid-May grass-lined mud bowl is placed. (Peck and James 1987), and nests Access to the interior of the stick are frequently used for several mass is through a hole in the side. years. The nests are very bulky and resem­ ble a small barrel in size and shape. Discussion In the Rainy River area, nests When the great herds of bison were (Figure 3) are typically placed killed off during the latter half of rather low in clumps of willow the 19th century, the Black-billed VOLUME 24 NUMBER 1 8 The magpie has also become somewhat urban­ ized and is common in many western Canadian cities, such as Calgary. Nearly all known Black-billed Magpie breeding in Ontario has occurred in two areas. The main breeding area is found west of Fort Frances in farmland extending to the Lake of the Woods and north to the boreal forest. Settlement and land clearing began as the fur trade slowly declined and logging of the forests began. The first farms along the Rainy River were established on the 'I heels of the loggers in the 1870s. By 1893, about 600 farms fronted the river between the towns of Fort Figure 3: A nest ofthe Black-billed Magpie near Rainy Frances and Rainy River River in a small willow, showing the ''barrel'' shape (Nute 1950). Land clear­ and central entrance hole. Photo by David H. Elder. ing advanced slowly north of the Rainy River until Magpie all but disappeared from the rock and thin soil of the Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Precambrian Shield was reached. Alberta (Buitron and Taylor 2003). Peatlands were also cleared and A return began in the early 20th drained by a system of ditches. century, encouraged by agricultural Land clearing for agriculture con­ industries and practices. In addi­ tinues today (Figure 5) and covers tion, land clearing to the north of about 36,100 hectares (OMNR, the area covered by the original pers. comm.). prairies created new habitat. Today, The second Ontario breeding the Black-billed Magpie is closely area is also farmland and is located associated with farmland or ranch­ west of the town of Dryden, centred land throughout most of its range. on the small communities of ONTARIO BIRDS APRIL 2006 9 hectares of cleared agri­ cultural land exist (OMNR, pers. comm.). Black-billed Magpies appear to be recent arrivals to both areas. A biological survey carried out in the Emo-Rainy River area in 1929 failed to record the species (Snyder 1938), and it had not been recorded as a breeding species in Ontario by 1937 (Baillie and Harrington 1937). Magpies were not record­ ed by Royal Ontario Museum staff working on ornithological surveys along the Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Railway lines between the Manitoba boundary and western Thunder Bay District in 1937, 1947 and 1949 (Snyder 1953). However, Figure 4: A Black-billed Magpie nest near Rainy an apparently wandering River located high in a Balsam Poplar (P. balsam­ ifera), an unusual site for magpies in Ontario. Photo individual was observed by David H. Elder. by 1. R. Dymond in the Kenora area during June Minnitaki and Oxdrift. Agricultural 1947 (Snyder 1953). settlement of this area began in the Birders started to visit the late 1890s at Dryden, once the Rainy River area in the early 1970s. Canadian Pacific Railway provided There were few if any local resi­ access, and slowly moved westward dents seriously interested in birds at (Wice 1967). Settlement was that time. The first birder to men­ encouraged by a huge forest fire tion Black-billed Magpies was the that burned from Vermillion Bay to late Gerry Bennett who saw one at Ignace. It removed a vast area of the Emo landfill site on 23 June forest and exposed the claybelt soils 1975. In his notes, Bennett stated: of the area. Today, about 9,100 "I'd been told to watch for magpies VOLUME 24 NUMBER 1 10 A Figure 5: Typical Black-billed Magpie breeding habitat near Rainy River: farmlands with scattered stands of aspen with a willow understorey. Photo by David H. Elder. ONTARIO BIRDS APRIL 2006 11 in this country and, at a dump about lar movement put them into areas 4 miles north of Rainy River, I found of suitable habitat with a sufficient one in with ravens" (Alan "critical mass" of birds to facilitate Wormington, pers. comm.). It would breeding. To reach both areas, it is appear from this statement that local likely the birds "island hopped" residents were aware of and familiar across the Lake of the Woods or with the species. Importantly, Bennett skirted the lake to the north or to did not see any magpies during previ­ the south. It is possible that move­ ous visits to the area in 1966 and ments of a similar nature occurred 1974. in the past but did not include In the Dryden area, Christmas enough birds to establish breeding. Bird Counts have been carried out Since then, Black-billed Magpies since 1961. Magpies were first have flourished in the farmlands west recorded in 1972, when two were of Fort Frances to Rainy River, and it found. Numbers gradually is not unusual to see post-breeding increased (although it was not flocks of 25 or more individuals feed­ found on every count) until 2002, ing in the hayfields during August. when 52 were observed. Numbers The species has done well in the dropped to 26 in 2003 (Darlene Minnitaki-Oxdrift farmlands west of Salter, pers. comm.). Dryden also, although the smaller The Black-billed Magpie has a area of suitable habitat may be a lim­ propensity to wander. It has been iting factor on the population. found at one time or another as a Will the Black-billed Magpie vagrant throughout most of continue to move east in Ontario as Ontario from the far north to the a breeding bird? Despite the mag­ extreme south (Speirs 1985). A pie's inclination to wander, it may major eastward flight occurred in be unlikely. The nearest areas of the fall of 1972, when 40 reports suitable habitat (farmland) are at were made in northwestern Thunder Bay (360 km eastward), at Ontario, from Sioux Lookout, Sault Ste Marie (800 km away) and Atikokan, Terrace Bay and Nakina at the Hearst-Cochrane areas (900 (Speirs 1985). Was this the invasion km to the east), distances that are that established the species in the covered by more or less continuous Rainy River and Dryden areas? forest. Perhaps even more impor­ The above noted numbers and sub­ tantly, there is evidence that the sequent observations would appear Black-billed Magpie is heat-intoler­ to support this suggestion. ant and not physiologically adapted It would thus appear that to the hot and humid summers of Black-billed Magpies gained a eastern North America (Bock and breeding foothold in the Rainy Lepthien 1975, Hayworth and River and Dryden areas at about Weathers 1984, Pittaway 1997, Trost the same time, in 1972. This particu- 1999). VOLUME 24 NUMBER 1 12 Acknowledgements Alan Wormington supplied infor­ Ministry of Natural Resources mation on the Black-billed Magpie (OMNR) offices in Dryden and in the Rainy River area from his Fort Frances supplied data concern­ personal notes and those of the late ing farmland area in 2004. Andrew Gerry Bennett. Darlene Salter pro­ Jano prepared the map, and George vided magpie information in the Peck made his photograph avail­ Dryden area from notes of the late able. Ron Tozer helped with the lit­ Laura Howe. Nick Escott and Marc erature and commented on an ear­ Johnson contributed pertinent lier draft.