West · Pacific Flyway
Magpies in California
Magpies in California come down to 3 species with regular eBird records, led by the Yellow-billed Magpie. Together they account for 74,338 of the 62 million eBird records from 2020–2024 — 0.1% of everything reported in the state.
The full list: Yellow-billed Magpie, Black-billed Magpie and Black-throated Magpie-Jay. Magpies are the long-tailed black-and-white members of the crow family. The Black-billed Magpie is a common bird across the West and northern Plains but essentially absent from the East, which is why so many people ask whether magpies occur in their state.
Magpies in California: every species, most-reported first
Every magpie with at least 25 eBird records in the state from 2020–2024, most-reported first. The status label is derived from each species’ own monthly share of all state records.
1. Yellow-billed Magpie (Pica nuttalli) — 55,636 records, 0.09% of the state’s eBird total; a year-round resident, reported in every month.
2. Black-billed Magpie (Pica hudsonia) — 17,524 records, 0.03% of the state’s eBird total; a year-round resident, reported in every month.
3. Black-throated Magpie-Jay (Calocitta colliei) — 1,178 records, 0.00% of the state’s eBird total; a summer visitor, present mainly from February to October and peaking in August.
When to see magpies in California
Adding up every species’ share of state eBird records month by month, magpies are most prominent in May, June and April and least in July and October. 2 of the 3 species are year-round — Yellow-billed Magpie and Black-billed Magpie — so there is no month without them.
Summer visitors. Black-throated Magpie-Jay arrives around February and is mostly gone after October (peak August).
Attracting magpies to California backyards
Where magpies live, they need no encouragement: they take suet, pet food, scraps, and anything else left out. Where they do not live, no feeder will bring one.
In California the magpie most likely to turn up is the Yellow-billed Magpie, a year-round resident, followed by the Black-billed Magpie.
Magpies in California: FAQ
How many species of magpies are there in California?
3 species of magpies have regular eBird records in California (at least 25 records in 2020–2024): Yellow-billed Magpie, Black-billed Magpie and Black-throated Magpie-Jay.
What is the most common magpie in California?
The Yellow-billed Magpie, with 55,636 eBird records in 2020–2024, followed by the Black-billed Magpie with 17,524. It is a year-round resident, reported in every month.
When is the best time to see magpies in California?
May, June and April, when the combined share of California eBird records belonging to magpies is highest. Summer visitors such as the Black-throated Magpie-Jay arrive around February.
Are there magpies in California?
Yes. the Yellow-billed Magpie (55,636 eBird records, year-round), the Black-billed Magpie (17,524 eBird records, year-round) and the Black-throated Magpie-Jay (1,178 eBird records, summer visitor) are regularly recorded in California.
More birds in California
Magpies in other states
Magpies in California: sources
Every number on this page comes from the EOD – eBird Observation Dataset published by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and distributed through GBIF under a CC BY 4.0 license: California records from 2020–2024, retrieved 2026-09-18. Species are drawn from the families Corvidae; only species with at least 25 records are listed, and a species is called a year-round resident when its monthly share of state records stays above 30% of its own peak in ten or more months. “Records” are individual eBird observations, so they reflect how often birders report a species, not a population count.