{"id":7761,"date":"2013-03-05T03:55:48","date_gmt":"2013-03-05T10:55:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=7761"},"modified":"2024-11-23T07:44:24","modified_gmt":"2024-11-23T13:44:24","slug":"nesting-time-for-black-billed-magpies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2013\/03\/05\/nesting-time-for-black-billed-magpies\/","title":{"rendered":"Nesting time for Black-billed Magpies"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Black-billedBlack-billed Magpie lifting off from a bush with a twig – Nikon D300, f6.3, 1\/2000, ISO 500, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light <\/span><\/p>\n

I dipped yesterday on the Snow Geese because they weren’t where they had been reported but I did see my first of the year Sandhill Cranes and swallows although they were too far away to get high quality images.<\/p>\n

But I did have some fun with Black-billed Magpies that are busy building their nest on Antelope Island<\/span><\/a>. Typically they take 40 to 50 days to build or renovate their old nests and they are very active during this time.<\/p>\n

\"Black-billedBlack-billed Magpie flying in with nesting material – Nikon D300, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 500, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 350mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

I use a mobile blind when photographing these Black-billed Magpies so as to not disturb their normal activity which is especially critical during nesting season or when the birds have chicks.<\/p>\n

There was a\u00a0sharp, cold wind blowing from the north yesterday and before I was finished photographing these Black-billed Magpies my hands had gone numb.<\/p>\n

I had a great time with these birds but they are a challenge to photograph because of the high contrast between the blacks and whites and because these magpies fly fast. A challenge; yes, but I enjoy it!<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Black-billed Magpie photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There was a sharp, cold wind blowing from the north yesterday and before I was finished photographing these Black-billed Magpies my hands had gone numb.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":137316,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[511,27,245,1022,26],"tags":[4004,1813,9068,4052,4122,4282,4944,6005,4842,4124,780,3976,4182,4450,9067,4167,6046],"class_list":["post-7761","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-antelope-island-state-park","category-avian","category-black-billed-magpies","category-davis-county-utah","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-black-billed-magpie","tag-cold-wind","tag-flight","tag-flying","tag-lift-off","tag-lifting-off","tag-magpie","tag-magpies","tag-mobile-blind","tag-nest-building","tag-nesting","tag-nesting-material","tag-nesting-season","tag-nesting-time","tag-pica-hudsonia","tag-twig"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/black-billed-magpie-nesting-mia-mcpherson-9082.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-21b","jetpack_sharing_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":121645,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/02\/20\/black-billed-magpie-with-nesting-materials\/","url_meta":{"origin":7761,"position":0},"title":"Black-billed Magpie With Nesting Materials","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"February 20, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"It was my first full spring in Utah, nearly 14 years ago, when my keen eyes were used to find my first Black-billed Magpie nest on Antelope Island State Park.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Black-billed Magpie in flight with nesting material for its nest, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/black-billed-magpie-nesting-material-mia-mcpherson-7510.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/black-billed-magpie-nesting-material-mia-mcpherson-7510.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/black-billed-magpie-nesting-material-mia-mcpherson-7510.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/black-billed-magpie-nesting-material-mia-mcpherson-7510.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1420,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2010\/11\/22\/nesting-black-billed-magpies\/","url_meta":{"origin":7761,"position":1},"title":"Nesting Black-billed Magpies","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"November 22, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"If I had not been paying attention to the first magpie's activity and behavior I would have missed the opportunity to photograph these birds and their nesting habits over the next several weeks.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Black-billed Magpie landing with nesting material. 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