{"id":34513,"date":"2015-10-05T05:44:00","date_gmt":"2015-10-05T11:44:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.featheredphotography.com\/blog\/?p=34513"},"modified":"2015-10-05T05:49:46","modified_gmt":"2015-10-05T11:49:46","slug":"magpie-with-a-praying-mantis-egg-case-and-an-ingenious-food-strategy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/2015\/10\/05\/magpie-with-a-praying-mantis-egg-case-and-an-ingenious-food-strategy\/","title":{"rendered":"Magpie With A Praying Mantis Egg Case (and an ingenious food strategy)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Black-billed Magpies prefer to eat arthropods, seeds and carrion but being omnivorous they aren’t fussy and will\u00a0consume a wide variety of food items. Yesterday morning on Antelope Island\u00a0I photographed one with a new (for me)\u00a0twist in its diet.<\/p>\n

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\"black-billed<\/p>\n

1\/2500, f\/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon<\/em> EF500mm f\/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n

After a slow morning on the island I approached this magpie next to the road as I was preparing to head for home. It didn’t fly off as I expected it to\u00a0when I drove by and I noticed that it had something in its beak so I stopped for a look through my lens. At first I thought it was a peanut but further inspection revealed it to be a praying mantis egg case (I believe)\u00a0along with some debris.<\/p>\n

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\"black-billed<\/p>\n

1\/1600, f\/7.1, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon<\/em> EF500mm f\/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here’s a better look at\u00a0a different angle. Over the years I’ve seen magpies with an almost endless list of food items but for me\u00a0this was something new and I thought it was interesting enough to post a couple of photos, even though they’re huge crops.<\/p>\n

And speaking of magpie diets (and complex behaviors)\u00a0here’s a little natural history snippet from Birds of North America Online\u00a0that I find hugely\u00a0interesting. It’s a bit of a read but I recommend wading through it to the end. It’s definitely worth it.<\/p>\n