Pica (bird)

Pica is a genus of seven species of birds in the family Corvidae in both the New World and the Old. It is one of several corvid genera whose members are known as magpies. Pica have long tails and predominantly black and white markings. After Corvus, this genus is the second most widespread within the Corvidae family, being distributed across Eurasia, north Africa, and western North America.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Molecular phylogeny suggests that Pica is most closely related to nutcrackers (Nucifraga), jackdaws (Coloeus) and crows and ravens (Corvus).<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Taxonomy

The genus Pica was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name=peters>Template:Cite book</ref> He derived the name by tautonymy from the specific epithet of the Eurasian magpie Corvus pica which was introduced by Linnaeus in 1758.<ref name=peters/><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Pica is the Latin word for the Eurasian magpie.<ref name=job>Template:Cite book</ref>

In 2018, a molecular phylogenetic study found that the Eurasian magpie consisted of multiple species including the Maghreb magpie, the Asir magpie, the black-rumped magpie and the oriental magpie.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Species

The genus contains seven living species:<ref name=ioc>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Species table

Fossil species

Two prehistoric species of Pica are currently known: Pica mourerae, from fossils found in Pliocene–Pleistocene boundary strata on Mallorca, and Pica praepica, from Early Pleistocene strata of Bulgaria.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>