Bird identification help

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Spazmo

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Canukistan
Hey guys. I've been wondering since I moved to Edmonton what this bird is (Sorry no pics). It's found everywhere around town, and has:
. Bluish colour
. White breast
. White wing tips
. White stripe down its tail
. about the size of a grouse (for lack of a better comparison)

I've seen them everywhere around town, but have no clue what it is or how to figure out what species it is.

Thanks!
 
I remember when I moved to Calgary.

I said to my boss that I saw this really neat looking bird that I had no idea what it was. I described it to him and he said "That's a GodDamn magpie!". He was laughing at me.

I'd never seen one before.
 
We shoot 'em whenever we can but they get pretty smart after awhile and they know the diff. if you have a gun or not!!
 
All of the genus "corvus" are plenty smart. Crows, magpies, ravens. They educate plenty quickly, and learn to distiguish between dangerous objects and those more benign. I shoot crows and that ilk for practice. Eagleye.
 
I never shot one the summer I worked in Calgary as a teenager but saw plenty. I think they are pretty cool looking but if they are as plentiful as crows and carry west nile like crows do then I'd be all for using them as cannon fodder for sure. I wanted to shoot one that summer and get it mounted as it's not something we have here so thought it would make a cool mount. Never was able to get one in range of my 22lr that summer but I did do in a quite a few prairie dogs and jackrabbits and even 2 coyotes with that .22!. I know most easterners would wonder what the H? it is, LOL! :D
 
Now that I know what they are, they also fall on the "OK to hunt" list, as seen on page 61 in the regs. Which means when I'm on my way to setup camp for crows, I may need to stop my truck and 'stretch some legs', on either a .22 or 12GA. Are they edible?
 
Spazmo said:
Now that I know what they are, they also fall on the "OK to hunt" list, as seen on page 61 in the regs. Which means when I'm on my way to setup camp for crows, I may need to stop my truck and 'stretch some legs', on either a .22 or 12GA. Are they edible?
Click to expand...

You could eat it if you want but I would not. I have seen them at Fish and Game suppers before.

They seem really easy to shoot in town because like said before they are smart. They do not feel threatened in town. Wait till you see them out in the country where they are a little bit more accustomed to getting shot at. You may need a .223, .204, 22-250 or similar to get a shot at one. The little bastards will sit in the trees 100 feet off the road and watch you drive buy all day. But slow down to almost a stop and they are gone. A good way to shoot them is actually to use a coyote call. They will show up to check it out if they are close.
 
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