Even though most magpies don’t attack people, many have seen or experienced a magpie attack while walking or riding through a magpie’s territory sometime between July and November. Some of these aggressive magpies will only swoop on particular people or become aggressive during breeding season when defending their territories and chicks.

A magpie’s defensive behaviour can range from a non-contact swoop with or without beak snapping, through to pecking, dive-bombing and sometimes front-on attacks from the ground.

Stay safe from swooping

By understanding magpies and knowing how to behave around them, you can stay safe from a swooping magpie:

• Stay calm and don’t yell at a magpie as you are likely to make it more aggressive next time anyone enters the defence zone around their nest.
• Never approach a young magpie. Fledglings that have just left the nest or have fallen out are likely to be under the watchful eye of a parent.
• A magpie will only defend its nest within a ‘defence zone’. For pedestrians, this is usually an area within 110 metres and for cyclists it is 150 metres.
• Avoid ‘defence zones’ by taking alternative routes during the breeding season. If you must enter a ‘defence zone’, magpies will be less likely to swoop if they are watched constantly, or if people walk in a close group.
• Almost all swoops on people are by male magpies defending their eggs and chicks. Chicks are in the nest for about six to eight weeks between July and November.
• Wear a broad-brimmed hat and sunglasses or shelter under an umbrella to protect your face from swooping magpies (painting or sticking large ‘eyes’ on the back of your hat can also deter magpies—but this won’t work for cyclists).
• Waving sticks or umbrellas in the air or attaching a brightly coloured flag on a long pole to your bicycle can stop magpies from swooping.