THE mild winter weather is playing havoc with nature and leading to earlier than usual magpie attacks.
Joan Ferguson has warned bike riders in the Sans Souci area to be on the lookout for swooping magpies after she was recently attacked while on her bike.
The attack left the keen cyclist so shaken that she has now changed her route to avoid the area where magpies are nesting.
"It was very scary and when you hear the swoop it is not very nice," she said.
"It was a complete surprise — I was really shocked.
"A man came out [of a shop] and said it was better to take off the helmet as they may think the holes in helmet are eyes.
"When I took the helmet off they stopped swooping."
Waving the bike pump over her head to ward off further swoops Ms Ferguson walked her bike the rest of the way home but said she was aware of serious spills by other cyclists when they've been attacked.
She said magpies avoid the area near the shops and walkers and riders on the Grand Parade are also safe as the birds don't nest there.
"Last year they were down there [in Alfred Street] in October and November, the normal nesting season.
"They are defending their young, out of instinct, and you're the enemy to them."
The Burke's Backyard website says the best way to avoid magpie attacks is to avoid entering nesting areas while the young are in the nest. ''If a magpie attacks once, avoid the park or take an alternative route for several weeks (chicks remain in the nest for around four weeks after hatching).''
What not to do: Throwing objects at the birds will only aggravate them further and make them more aggressive. Remember, the bird is defending its young. See more: http://www.burkesbackyard.com.au/factsheets/Conservation-and-the-Environment/Magpies/2254
Have you been attacked by magpies this nesting season? Tell us your tactics for keeping them at bay.
