Black-billed Magpie

I went out to shoot scenery today but all my shots were boring.  Luckily I stopped to take a few pictures of this magpie on the side of the road or I wouldn't have had a blip.

Here are few facts from my iBirdPro app (which I highly recommend):

In the past, magpies have been considered vermin due to their feeding on poultry eggs and orchard crops and farmers placed bounties on them but they are now protected in the U.S.

They spend up to 40 hours building nests with domes on top.

Unlike most birds, they can use scent to locate food.

A group of magpies has many collective nouns, including a "charm", "gulp", "mischief", "tittering" and "tribe" of magpies.

And more here if you are interested.