The Australian magpies are just trying to defend their families, to state the B obvious....
Sometimes it just becomes personal ! :eek!:
I used to work next to a large shopping mall that I would often go over to at lunch time. There were tree lined avenues surrounding, and a large open air carpark surrounding - again with spaced shade trees throughout. At that time there was a postie who passed by/through on his daily rounds - all kitted out in fluoro yellow jacket and helmet and red step through postie bike replete with fluoro orange flag on the back.
In an area where there were h-u-n-d-r-e-d-s of people walking around in the car park, going in and out of the shopping centre, and along the street outside, waiting at bus stops, (across the road from the local pool) , this poor bloke was singled out relentlessly by the resident magpie who lived in some large trees in a park opposite my work.
This magpie would pick this bloke up on his radar as he came past that park and swoop him mercilessly for the better part of a kilometre ....... never even looked at anyone else - day after day after day. :eek!::eek!:
This poor guy even took to the extreme measures of trying to disappear by riding along the pathway under the surrounding shopping centre awning. No good. The magpie would track him all the way and hit him as soon as he emerged.
One day he pulled up next to me at the entrance to the shops - he was a jittery mess. I said to him, jeez mate, what did you do to that magpie? He said nothin' - he just doesn't like me!
He even tried dismounting and walking his bike through the shopping centre - only to have the magpie absolutely nail him when he emerged on the other side !!
Poor bloke was a mess - it wouldn't surprise me if he ended up having to take early retirement with PTSD !
Sometimes these birds (and Pied Butcherbirds too) just seem to go plain psycho ......
Chosun :gh: