Magpies, a protected species, usually nest in spring, and begin swooping to protect their nests and eggs from mid-September onwards.

Reports logged to the Magpie Alert website show that for some birds, nesting began early with Orange walkers and cyclists ducking for cover since mid-August and more than a dozen this season.

While some are doing their best to avoid the birds, people like Will Payne can't get enough of them.

He managed to capture an image of the exact moment a magpie pecked his ear during a recent outing.

"When I ride to the bike track, there's this magpie that always tries to swoop me," he said.

"He's more white than black and the opposite of all the other magpies. I just decided to video it and he got my ear.

"That one swoops me the most, but the other ones who swoop me don't really hit me. This one, every time you go past it, it will swoop you."

In Orange there are two distinct clusters, according to Magpie Alert. The first being in the triangular area in-between Molong Road, Forbes Road and the Northern Distributor.

The other group is up in North Orange, mainly off William Maker Drive.

The Orange Cycle and Triathlon Club's season is scheduled to begin early November and committee member Steve Martin knows they will have to keep a sharp eye out.

"It's shared on Facebook pages where they're back or where there's a particularly vicious one," he said of the swooping magpies.

"The club and other cyclists do share on social media where to avoid and where to be careful. Some people put cable ties on the top of their helmets to try and scare them off, but most people just have to put up with it."

Swooping season is well and truly underway, but there's a mixed feeling about the black and white birds.

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