I've always had a soft spot for Magpies, which I am used to seeing in Oregon. Arriving in Taiwan I was again exited to get close to some and snap some photos, and then read through the books as to what type it was. That's where the confusion set in.
In Mark Brazil's birds of East Asia, he lists it as a Common Magpie (Pica pica). However, in a local guide book I picked up specializing in birds of Taiwan, they refer to it as the Black-billed Magpie (Pica pica), the same that we have in Oregon. Then there is Wikipedia, (this is actually a great map: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PicaPica.jpg) which lists a sub-species (Pica pica sericea) and alternately calls it by the common name of the Korean Magpie, the Asian Magpie, the Chinese Magpie, and seems to both suggest that it is a Black-billed Magpie while also saying it can't be.
Of course, I understand that there are many different colloquial names for birds, and a second language is not a great place for agreement on local birds, and also that in the Pica Genus the taxonomy is a work in progress. So my real question is, if you have strong feelings about Magpies, what would you call this bird?
In Mark Brazil's birds of East Asia, he lists it as a Common Magpie (Pica pica). However, in a local guide book I picked up specializing in birds of Taiwan, they refer to it as the Black-billed Magpie (Pica pica), the same that we have in Oregon. Then there is Wikipedia, (this is actually a great map: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PicaPica.jpg) which lists a sub-species (Pica pica sericea) and alternately calls it by the common name of the Korean Magpie, the Asian Magpie, the Chinese Magpie, and seems to both suggest that it is a Black-billed Magpie while also saying it can't be.
Of course, I understand that there are many different colloquial names for birds, and a second language is not a great place for agreement on local birds, and also that in the Pica Genus the taxonomy is a work in progress. So my real question is, if you have strong feelings about Magpies, what would you call this bird?