Australian Magpie
[Gymnorhina tibicen]
They are magpies
in Australia but they are not close relatives of Eurasian magpies [Pica pica].
Australian magpies belong to the Artamidae family along with currawongs,
butcherbirds, and woodswallows whereas Eurasian magpies belong to corvidae
family with crows and jays.
One subtle
difference we can detect with our bare eyes is that Australian magpie's
nostrils are exposed whereas Eurasian magpies' are covered with short bristles.
Probably
pioneering Europeans landed in Australia saw these birds looking similar with
the magpies they had been accustomed to and named them as Ausie magpies.
Yeah, that is the
pitfall of common names, especially in case of convergent evolution in which
animals sharing similar traits although their ancestral lineages are not related
or distantly related.
Australian magpie
is a nice example why scientific names are important to categorize related
animals. Here their scientific name perfectly suits their talent. Gymnorhina
tibicen = bare-nosed flautist!
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