Talking bird

I was sitting in the lounge room trying to make a decision, when I heard the unmistakable chatter of a tame bird, just outside the back door.  There were other birds calling too, one sounding like a magpie out in the big gum near the back fence, but this sound was quite distinct, with whistles and very human sounding words mixed in.

So I crept over to the door, expecting to see an escape pet bird parading around.  Instead, there was a single magpie, standing not 2 metres away, looking boldly at me through the screen and twittering and chatting in the most conversational way. 

Despite their many and often pretty calls, I have never heard a magpie talking like that.  Ever.  So I tiptoed away to get the video camera.  But the bird saw that camera, stopped its talking, and then flew off.

If only I could’ve understood what it was saying.  It might’ve been some good advice…