The Eurasian Magpie has a harsh, chattering, laughing call that is often rendered as a rapid "tschak-tschak-tschak". It is frequently heard when the bird is disturbed or is sounding the alarm at a predator, and a gathering of magpies can keep up a sustained racket together. The species also has a quieter, more subdued warbling song. The sharp chatter is so distinctive that in Swedish it gave rise to the verb "skattra" (to chatter), and it often reveals the whereabouts of a cat, owl or bird of prey, as the magpies gather and raise the alarm collectively.