[Jarmsy]

This summer I spent an hour watching a pair of magpies harass a fox. The fox was trying to sunbathe, but the magpies kept dive-bombing it, pecking its tail, and landing in front of it then flying away just as the fox went for them, all while making a chattering sound that seemed a lot like laughter. I've heard theories that they do this as revenge for stolen eggs, or to chase foxes away from their nests, but this was in an open patch of ground far from where they nest and it really looked to me that they were just teasing it for fun.

[bayindirh]

They may know that particular fox.

Crows can identify singular persons, hold grudge against them and disseminate the information around to make sure that particular person has a hard time [0].

Magpies are also very smart birds, aggressively protecting their nests and offspring from cats and other threats. So they may have identified that fox somewhere else.

Also, IIRC, magpies and crows are somewhat related.

[0]: https://urban.uw.edu/news/crows-hold-grudges-against-individ...

[vidarh]

> Also, IIRC, magpies and crows are somewhat related.

They are both corvids (members of the family Corvidae) along with ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays and others. Most corvids are fairly smart.

[rolandog]

In my hometown, sometimes birds (I think they may have been crows) swoop across real close to cars along a straight stretch of highway. I've had to slow down sometimes thinking I might hit one.

I like to imagine they go back to their group of bird bros and say: "Ha! Made him flinch!".

[Jarmsy]

One of favourite examples of this sort of thrill seeking animal behaviour is this gibbon pulling the ears of a young tiger https://youtu.be/SHXo-BpE8T8

[rolandog]

That is fascinating! The laps he runs around the young tigers! Thanks for the link.