Pie

In the Middle Ages this bird was simply called a Pie, a name thought to be derived from its Latin name of 'pica'. According to the Collins English Dictionary, this meaning of 'pie' is recorded as early as the C13th, and by the C14th the derived word 'pied' had appeared, meaning something marked with patches of two or more colours. By the C16th the Patriarchy had got involved, decreeing that the the chattering call of a Pie sounded like the gossipy chatter of wimmin, and as the diminutive Mag was commonly used at the time as a generalised term for a woman (in the same way that Joe or Jack often was for a man), the Pie became a Magpie. I'm sure* that this historical association with groups of women had no connection whatsoever with the bird's reputation in folklore for predicting or even causing bad luck of one kind or another.

Anyway I'm not superstitious, and I was very happy to see this particular Pie in my garden today, because I'd been so engaged in the final push to get everything ready for Christmas that I'd forgotten to take any photos, and by the time I remembered it was virtually dark. There were quite a few birds feeding in the garden at that point, but the camera could barely pick them out in the gloom, and it was only the brilliant white of the Pie's breast and scapular feathers that allowed the autofocus to catch hold and do its thing. I'm impressed that the sensor also picked up the lovely blue-green iridescence on the wing and tail feathers, because it certainly wasn't visible to the naked eye.

This evening H and S arrived from the Frozen North to spend a week with us, so our family Christmas is now underway.


* (not)