Swooping season has arrived, the time of year that puts fear in the hearts of cyclists, walkers and children coming home from school.
The good news, it only lasts for six to eight weeks.
ACT senior ranger of urban wildlife Sharon Woods said that while other birds were known to swoop, magpies were the most common.
"They're just protecting territory and their families. So they've either got eggs or fledglings in the nest," she said.
"They swoop anything that is perceived as a threat. So it could be other birds, cats, dogs, magpies, and people. It can start from just harassment from humans. If they have identified someone perceived as a threat, that might trigger them to start swooping.
"Not all magpies swoop, but the ones that do are in breeding pairs and usually it's the male magpies."
She urged well-meaning people to leave magpie fledglings alone if they were discovered on the ground, saying the parents will still care for the chick.
However, if there is no activity near the bird call ACT Wildlife on 0432 300 033.
As part of her job as ranger of urban wildlife, Ms Woods places signs to alert people of swooping birds in the area. The signs also provide some advice on how to avoid being swooped.
She urged people to walk quickly through the birds' territory, do not run, and if possible take a different route next time.
"You can protect your head with an umbrella, a hat or a helmet and you can wear glasses to protect your eyes," Ms Woods said.
"Pets will also trigger them, so keep the dog on lead and don't leave them around an area with a swooping bird in it.
"You can attach flags or streamers to a bike or a backpack, which just might be a deterrent. And walk your bike through the bird's territory and don't ride, for some reason magpies perceive cyclists as quite a decent threat."
The ACT has recorded 209 magpie swooping incidents so far this year according to the magpie alert website. The majority of reported injuries were sustained by cyclists.
However, magpies aren't the only birds to look out for. The masked lapwing, commonly known as a plover, nests on the ground and is notorious for swooping passersby. Adults may dive on intruders, use loud noises and swooping or act as though they have a broken wing in an attempt to lure the intruder away from the nest.
Professor of ecology at Griffith University Darryl Jones said that 90 per cent of magpies never swoop.
He stressed that for magpies that do attack, it's a natural behaviour to keep their chicks safe.
However, magpies can remember faces and will not swoop people they know and trust.
"The reason that's even possible is because magpies always live in a very small territory. Most magpies that live in towns and cities live just in a small territory that provides everything they need," Professor Jones said.
"There might be maybe up to 40 or 50 people that live in that territory but those birds live there all the time and never leave. They see all those people, they see kids grow up, the birds live for 20 years and those magpies absolutely know every single individual in their patch."
However, if the magpies live in a heavily populated or busy area they can become aggressive, due to the large number of people.
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