Designing and Developing for Google Glass

Colophon

The animals on the cover of Designing and Developing for Google Glass are red-billed blue magpies (Urocissa erythrorhyncha). These birds live around the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, including in the lower-altitude western Himalayas. Red-billed blue magpies can dwell in subtropical, moist, or human-modified environments (such as farmland), and their range includes forest, scrubland, and hills.

The red-billed blue magpie has the longest tail of any member of the crow family Corvidae. Its body is a little over two feet long; the tail is over half of the entire length (it takes up 17 out of 26 inches, on average). Its head, neck, and chest are black with blue spots, while the lower body is off-white (there are no bonus points for guessing its beak color). The legs, feet, and a ring around the eye also tend to be a vivid orange-red, but some birds have yellow feet and legs. The long, bright blue tail has a broad white tip, and is a striking feature of this bird. The red-billed blue magpie’s diet is made up of small animals, especially invertebrates, which are then supplemented by fruits, seeds, and nectar.

This bird’s cries are varied and unique, and they are known to be excellent mimickers of other species’ calls. Red-billed blue magpies make shallow nests in trees and shrubs and go out to hunt for food in packs. After reproduction, the female magpie incubates three to five eggs on her own while the male provides food. In the wild, red-billed blue magpies have even ...