Birds
Unique Northern Cardinal TraitsThe northern cardinal is one of the few North American songbirds where the female also sings, often while sitting on her nest. A mated pair can share phrases of a song, but the female may even sing a longer and more complex song than the male. Listen on cold mornings for this treetop duet or check out this YouTube video to see (and hear) a pair of cardinals carrying on.
Nests contain two to five eggs and require almost two weeks of incubation. Only the female will brood the eggs in the nest, but the male will bring her food and occasionally stand guard while she’s briefly away. When the nestlings hatch, they’re altricial, blind and helpless, like most songbirds. Both the male and female will feed the young a diet of mostly insects. Feeding can be as often as four times an hour for the first two weeks, depending on clutch size. The parents need a lot of bugs close by to raise a healthy brood. A native and diverse habitat can provide the plentiful selection of insects a young cardinal family needs. Young will leave the nest just nine to 13 days after hatching. They’ll be strong fliers after a week and fully independent of parental care one to two months after fledging.
Plant native trees, shrubs and flowers. With a bill highly adapted for removing seeds from shells, the northern cardinal has a diet consisting of 71 percent plant material, and 29 percent insects and larvae. The seeds, fruit and insects on which the bird depends are found in abundance on native trees, shrubs and flowers. Incorporate plantings of native shrubs like dogwood (Cornus spp.) and elderberry (Sambucus spp.), native vines like wild grape (Vitis spp.) and blackberry (Rubus spp.), and native sedges (Carex spp.) or grasses to attract these birds to your garden. Trees that provide resources for northern cardinals are mulberry (Morus spp.), hackberry (Celtis spp.) and tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipifera), among others. The male cardinal shown here is likely grateful for the fruits still present on this crab apple branch late into the winter.
How to Attract Northern CardinalsHang bird feeders. Primarily seed eaters in winter, northern cardinals dine on the fruits and nuts of trees, shrubs, grasses and weeds. Nearly any bird feeder will be able to provide a seed source they’re happy with, but, like many feeder birds, they prefer black-oil sunflower seeds. They’re likely to take the morsel to a nearby bush for cover and then return, repeatedly, for another. In the spring and summer, northern cardinals bound among branches and blossoms, looking for bugs like beetles, butterflies and their larvae. The female cardinal shown here may be able to collect a six-legged meal among the flowers of this eastern native mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia).
Differences between males and females. The male northern cardinal is well-known for his intense and striking red plumage. From the tip of the tail to the top of the crest, he proudly wears these colors year-round. Northern cardinals don’t molt into a dull plumage in the winter like most male songbirds.The female is mostly tan and brown, with warm tones of red splashed on the wings and tail, and decorating the tip of the crest. Her black mask isn’t as large or pronounced as his, but she still sports that bright orange bill. Even with the absence of the bright red plumage, the female is a striking, colorful bird and occasionally elicits reports to the Cornell Lab of a mistaken “exotic” species visiting a backyard feeder.
How to Identify Northern CardinalsBesides its colorful plumage, the northern cardinal can be recognized by its very large and orange conical bill surrounded by a solid black face mask. It has a tall crest on the top of its head that it can raise or lower for display or communication and a long, straight tail. About as big as a robin, this large songbird is one of the easier backyard birds to spot and positively identify.
Family: Cardinalidae, which also includes grosbeaks and buntingsLatin name: Cardinalis cardinalisCommon name: Northern cardinalDistribution: Abundant throughout the eastern United States, northern cardinals can be found from Maine to Florida and west to Minnesota, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. Some southern populations extend across lower New Mexico into central Arizona. They’ve also been introduced in Hawaii and can be found on the main islands.
Certainly one of the more popular birds in North America, the northern cardinal is the state bird of Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. Two professional sports teams and several universities have made the cardinal their mascot. With its bold colors and fierce territorial nature, it’s not hard to see why.
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