Magpies are on the general licence as vermin/ pests and are on it so those with the required paperwork can legally try and control them .
The magpie is the most successful predatory bird we have in the UK , it is thought that they kill off millions of other birds ..more than even our, " delightful, lovely ,fluffy , furry or cuddly" cats kill .
It's not unusual to see pairs of magpies flying the hedge lines looking for birds to fly out or see that ," beautiful" bird watching a hedge /bush from a tree looking for where the nesting birds are coming from or going to .
They have their young hatch a few days after most of the smaller birds , so find the small birds chicks and " bubbed " eggs a useful source of food for their own chicks.
Magpies are apparently on par with squirrels for nicking eggs and chicks.