Magpies belong to the Corvidae family of birds that includes crows, jays and ravens. Birds of this family are generally considered to be noisy, inquisitive birds that in folklore from around the world have often been associated with omens, good or bad. In some European cultures, they accompany witches. An English rhyme, “One for sorrow, two for joy; three for a girl, four for a boy; Five for silver, six for gold; Seven for a secret never to be told,” suggests that spotting a lone magpie brings bad news. But no one will deny that the magpies are striking in appearance, or that some of the most flamboyant species are found in the Himalayas.
From Kashmir to Myanmar, a few closely related blue magpie species are a common sight. The gold-billed magpie, Urocissa flavirostris, also called the yellow-billed blue magpie, has mischief in its eyes and occupies the high altitude zone between 2000 and 3000 meters above sea level. At slightly lower heights we find the red-billed magpie, and the blue magpie is found at lower altitudes where humans live in larger numbers.
