Cardinals

One of the most recognized birds in the eastern half of mainland US, we love seeing Northern (Gross Bill) Cardinals on our feeder, especially in the winter when the brilliant deep red color of the mature male stands out against lighter backgrounds. It isn’t very frequent that I can catch a photo of a male on our feeder, and they seldom feed during a snow fall (as in the top photo). Male cardinals typically perch 50 or so feet away from our feeder in tall bushes, swoop in to grab some black-oil sunflower seeds, and leave almost immediately for the bushes. While in the bushes they serve as a type of “watch-bird”, warning other birds of potential danger (e.g., yours truly with a camera) with a piercing chirp. These two photos were taken in February 2014 a few days apart.