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Pica nuttallii

(Audubon, 1837)

Yellow-billed Magpie

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G3VulnerableGlobal Rank
VulnerableIUCN
MediumThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.104725
Element CodeABPAV09020
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNVulnerable
Endemicendemic to a single state or province
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassAves
OrderPasseriformes
FamilyCorvidae
GenusPica
Synonyms
Pica nutalli(Audubon, 1837)Pica nutallii(Audubon, 1837)Pica nuttalli(Audubon, 1837)
Other Common Names
Pie à bec jaune (FR) yellow-billed magpie (EN)
Concept Reference
American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in The Auk]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.
Taxonomic Comments
Considered conspecific with P. pica by some authors (e.g., Phillips [1986], who treated this species as a subspecies of P. pica) and constituting a superspecies with it (AOU 1998). Various spellings have been used in the literature, here we follow AviList (2025) in adopting nuttallii as "the double i rendition of the original spelling must not be changed according to Article 33.4".
Conservation Status
Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2022-09-26
Change Date2022-09-26
Edition Date2022-09-26
Edition AuthorsCannings, S.
Threat ImpactMedium
Range Extent20,000-200,000 square km (about 8000-80,000 square miles)
Rank Reasons
This bird has a restricted range within central California, and has suffered a dramatic decline of over 50 percent since 2004. Initial steep decline was the result of the arrival of West Nile Virus, and the ongoing decline indicates that the virus may still be impacting the species.
Range Extent Comments
Resident in and restricted to central California, mainly in the Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys and lower adjacent foothills, and valleys among Coast Ranges southeast of San Francisco Bay, south to Santa Barbara (Koenig et al. 2022). Casual north to northern California (AOU 1983). Extent (area of convex polygon around range) estimated from range map in BirdLife International (2021).

Range has retracted northward in the San Joaquin Valley, probably because of intensive agricultural development. Retractions have occurred locally elsewhere, such as Monterey County and the south coast of Santa Barbara County and all of Ventura County (Koenig et al. 2022).
Threat Impact Comments
The primary cause of the serious decline since 2003 is the West Nile Virus; this bird has suffered the largest impact from this virus of any avian species (Crosbie et al. 2008, Kilpatrick and Wheeler 2019). Continuing declines suggest that this virus continues to be transmitted through the population, despite the fact that the peak of the outbreak occurred 2004-2006 (Kilpatrick and Wheeler 2019). Range retractions in the San Joaquin Valley have been ascribed to intensive agricultural development, and loss of oak savanna to housing and agricultural development has resulted in losses in Monterey County.and elsewhere (Koenig et al. 2021). Other, perhaps minor threats include Sudden Oak Death, summer droughts and poisons used to kill ground squirrels (BirdLife International 2021).
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Oak savanna with large trees, interspersed with grasslands or cultivated lands, and open riparian woodland. Urban populations use a wide range of tree species, usually close to streams, and forage on irrigated lawns and on annual grassland that is mowed or grazed to less than 15 cm (Koenig et al. 2022). Usually nests at outer end of a tree limb, 12-18 m above ground (Terres 1980).

Ecology

Adults establish year-round territories in a loose colony. Yearlings flock during breeding season (Verbeek 1973).

Reproduction

Nests March-June. Female incubates 6-7, sometimes 5-8, eggs probably for about 18 days (Terres 1980). Both parents tend young. Usually first breeds when 2 years old. Life-long pair bond. Nests in loose colony.
Terrestrial Habitats
Woodland - HardwoodSavannaGrassland/herbaceousOld fieldCropland/hedgerowSuburban/orchard
Palustrine Habitats
Riparian
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN3
ProvinceRankNative
CaliforniaS3Yes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
1 - Residential & commercial developmentSmall (1-10%)UnknownHigh (continuing)
1.1 - Housing & urban areasSmall (1-10%)UnknownHigh (continuing)
2 - Agriculture & aquacultureRestricted (11-30%)UnknownHigh (continuing)
2.1 - Annual & perennial non-timber cropsRestricted (11-30%)UnknownHigh (continuing)
8 - Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseasesPervasive (71-100%)Moderate or 11-30% pop. declineHigh (continuing)
8.1 - Invasive non-native/alien species/diseasesPervasive (71-100%)Moderate or 11-30% pop. declineHigh (continuing)
9 - PollutionRestricted (11-30%)UnknownHigh (continuing)
9.3 - Agricultural & forestry effluentsRestricted (11-30%)UnknownHigh (continuing)
11 - Climate change & severe weatherPervasive (71-100%)Slight or 1-10% pop. declineModerate (short-term)
11.2 - DroughtsPervasive (71-100%)Slight or 1-10% pop. declineModerate (short-term)

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References (24)
  1. American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1983. Check-list of North American Birds, 6th edition. Allen Press, Inc., Lawrence, Kansas. 877 pp.
  2. American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in <i>The Auk</i>]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.
  3. AviList Core Team. 2025. AviList: The Global Avian Checklist, v2025. https://doi.org/10.2173/avilist.v2025
  4. Balda, R. P., and G. C. Bateman. 1971. Flocking and annual cycle of the piñon jay, <i>Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus</i>. Condor 73:287-302.
  5. BirdLife International. 2021. <i>Pica nutalli.</i> The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: e.T22705874A179580012. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021- 3.RLTS.T22705874A179580012.en
  6. Birkhead, T. R. 1991. The ecology and behavior of black-billed and yellow-billed magpies. Academic Press. 259 pp.
  7. Crosbie, S.P., W.D. Koenig, W.K. Reisen, V.L. Kramer, L. Marcus, R. Carney, E. Pandolfino, G.M. Bolen, L.R. Crosbie, D.A. Bell, and H.B. Ernest. 2008. Early impact of West Nile Virus on the Yellow-billed Magpie (<i>Pica nuttalli</i>). Auk 125: 542-550.
  8. Goodwin, D. 1986. Crows of the world. Second edition. Univ. Washington Press. 300 pp.
  9. Horn, H. S. 1968. The adaptive significance of colonial nesting in the Brewer's Blackbird. Ecology 49:682-694.
  10. Kilpatrick, A.M., and S.S. Wheeler. 2019. Impact of West Nile Virus on bird populations: limited lasting effects, evidence for recovery, and gaps in our understanding of impacts on ecosystems. Journal of Medical Entomology 56:1491-1497.
  11. Koenig, W. D., M.D. Reynolds, and D.A. Airola. 2022. Yellow-billed Magpie <i>Pica nuttalli</i>, version 2.0. In Birds of the World (G.M. Kirwan and B.K. Keeney, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.yebmag.02">https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.yebmag.02
  12. Ligon, J. D. 1971. Late summer-autumnal breeding of the piñon jay in New Mexico. Condor 73:147-153.
  13. Linsdale, J.M. 1937. The natural history of magpies. Pacific Coast Avifauna, No. 25. 234 pp.
  14. Meehan, T. D., G.S. LeBaron, K. Dale, N.L. Michel, G.M. Verutes, and G.M. Langham. 2018. Abundance trends of birds wintering in the USA and Canada, from Audubon Christmas Bird Counts, 1966-2017, version 2.1. New York, New York, USA.
  15. Moore, W. S., and R. A. Dolbeer. 1989. The use of banding recovery data to estimate dispersal rates and gene flow in avian species: case studies in the Red-winged Blackbird and Common Grackle. Condor 91:242-253.
  16. National Geographic Society (NGS). 1983. Field guide to the birds of North America. National Geographic Society, Washington, DC.
  17. Pardieck, K.L., D.J. Ziolkowski Jr., M. Lutmerding, V.I. Aponte, and M.-A.R. Hudson. 2020.North American Breeding Bird Survey Dataset 1966 - 2019: U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/P9J6QUF6.
  18. Phillips, A. R. 1986. The known birds of North and Middle America: distribution and variations, migrations, changes, hybrids, etc. Part I, Hirundinidae to Mimidae, Certhiidae. Published by the author, Denver, Colorado. lxi + 259 pp.
  19. Tarvin, K. A., and G. E. Woolfenden. 1999. Blue Jay (<i>Cyanocitta cristata</i>). No. 469 IN A. Poole and F. Gill, editors. The birds of North America. The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA. 32pp.
  20. Terres, J. K. 1980. The Audubon Society encyclopedia of North American birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York.
  21. Thompson, F. R., III. 1994. Temporal and spatial patterns of breeding brown-headed cowbirds in the midwestern United States. Auk 111:979-990.
  22. Verbeek, N.A.M. 1973. The exploitation system of the yellow-billed magpie. University of California Publications in Zoology, Vol. 99, University of California Press, Berkeley.
  23. Williams, L. 1952b. Breeding behavior of the Brewer blackbird. Condor 54:3-47.
  24. Willson, M. F. 1966. Breeding ecology of the Yellow-headed Blackbird. Ecological Monographs 36:51-77.