"Redbird"

In the south, cardinals are often called ‘redbirds’ and it is easy to see why. With their bright red plumage, black mask, and prominent crest, the male cardinal is difficult to confuse with any other bird. Females are brown with a reddish wash on wings and the tail. Cardinals are abundant and widespread in woodlands, and a common bird at feeders in residential areas.

 

Cardinals are typically the first bird to visit feeders in the morning and the last to visit in the evenings.

 

The Northern Cardinal’s name dates back to the time of the United States founding colonists, stemming from the similarity of the males’ vibrant red plumage to the red biretta and vestments of distinguishable Catholic cardinals.

 

Northern Cardinals are classified as granivorous animals because they live on a diet consisting of mostly seeds. Their short, stout, cone-shaped beaks are specially designed to crack open the hulls on seeds and shells on nuts.

 

Occasionally, a lack of the typical red pigment in the plumage occurs and is replaced by vibrant yellow or orangish pigments, which results in a yellow cardinal. The appearance of vibrant yellow Northern Cardinals is typically caused by a genetic plumage variation called xanthochroism.

 

Contradictory to many other songbirds, Northern Cardinals are mostly a non-migratory species, opting to overwinter in their chosen spring/summer habitat.

 

I found this male in my backyard in Polk County, Florida.

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