Northern Cardinal

Description:

This is a female Northern Cardinal. It is a relatively large songbird. It is a light colored brown and has red coloring on its' wings, tail, and crest. Adults have a red bill.

Habitat:

Habitat: urban areas, woodland edges, thickets, and swamps. Resides in the southern, eastern, and north eastern areas of the United States. Can also be found in Mexico, Baja California, and in some areas of Central America. Can reach as far north as the southeastern areas of Canada. Nesting: Northern Cardinals build their nest in a variety of trees including but not limited to dogwood, hawthorn, spruce, pines, and maples. Males assist in building the nest, but females do most of the work. Nests on average take 3-9 days to construct. Nesting materials include twigs, leaves, bark, grasses, vines, rootlets, and pine needles. They have 1-2 broods per year with a clutch of 2-5 eggs. Diet: Northern Cardinals eat fruits, seeds, and insects such as beetles, cicadas, moths, and butterflies to name a few. Ref: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Nort...

Notes:

Cardinals are abundant in numbers where I live. Last winter I spotted 14 in my backyard. They are beautiful birds with a beautiful song. Fun Facts: Mated pairs of the Northern Cardinal share song phrases! They are fierce defenders of their breeding territory and often attack their own reflection in glass and mirrors. The oldest recorded Northern Cardinal was just shy of 16 years old and was found in Pennsylvania. Ref: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Nort... https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird...