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Difference between revisions of "Northern Cardinal" - BirdForum Opus

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;''Cardinalis cardinalis''
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[[Image:Northern_Cardinal.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Adult Male<br />Photo by {{user|SulairDH|SulairDH}}<br />Atlanta, [[Georgia]], [[USA]]]]
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[[Image:Northern_Cardinal.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo by SulairDH<br/>Adult Male<br/>Photo taken: Atlanta, GA, USA]]
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;[[:Category:Cardinalis|Cardinalis]] cardinalis
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==Identification==
 
==Identification==
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All ages and sexes have crest and large, conical bill<br/>
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[[Image:IMG 98233.JPG|thumb|350px|right|Adult Female<br />Photo by {{user|tetoneon|tetoneon}}<br />New Jersey, [[USA]], July 2015]]
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====Male====
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Male 22–23·5 cm (8½-9¼in), female 21–21·6 cm (8¼-8½ in)<br />
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All red with black mask and chin.  Wings have some gray.  Red bill<br/>
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All ages and sexes have a crest and large, conical bill<br/>
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====Female====
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'''Male'''
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Brown overall with some red in wings, face, and tail.  Red bill<br/>
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*All red with black mask and chin
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====Juvenile====
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*Wings have some gray
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*Orange bill<br/>
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'''Female'''
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*Brown overall with some red in wings, face, and tail
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*Red bill<br/>
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'''Juvenile'''<br/>
 
Similar to female but bill is dark instead of red.<br/>
 
Similar to female but bill is dark instead of red.<br/>
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<br/>
 
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Length: 7.75 inches
 
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[[Image:Northern_Cardinal_Juvenile_Female.jpg|left|Photo by Larry D Smith<br/> Juvenile Female - Northern_Cardinal_Juvenile_Female http://www.SouthwestNaturePhotos.com/Larry]]
 
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[[Image:Northern_Cardinal_Juvenile_Male.jpg|right|Photo by Larry D Smith <br/>Juvenile Male- Northern_Cardinal_Juvenile_Male http://www.SouthwestNaturePhotos.com/Larry]]
 
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==Distribution==
 
==Distribution==
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[[United States]]
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[[United States]] and [[Mexico]].
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==Taxonomy==
 
==Taxonomy==
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====Subspecies====
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[[Image:Northern_Cardinal_Juvenile_Female.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Juvenile Female<br />Photo by {{user|ldsmith|Larry D Smith}}<br/>]]
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[[Image:Northern_Cardinal_Juvenile_Male.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Juvenile Male<br />Photo by {{user|ldsmith|Larry D Smith}} <br/>]]
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<!--EDITORS: these two juvenile images do not appear in the Gallery-->
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There are 18 subspecies<sup>[[#References|[1]]]</sup>:
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*''C. c. superbus'': Extremee [[California]] to [[Arizona]], south-western [[New Mexico]] and northern Sonora
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*''C. c. seftoni'': Central [[Baja California]] (south to latitude 27°N)
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*''C. c. igneus'': Southern [[Baja California]] (north to latitude 27°N)
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*''C. c. clintoni'': Isla Cerralvo (Gulf of [[California]])
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*''C. c. townsendi'': Isla Tiburón (Sea of Cortés) and adjacent coastal Sonora
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*''C. c. affinis'': Western [[Mexico]] (south-eastern Sonora to south-western Chihuahua and western Durango)
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*''C. c. sinaloensis'': Coastal western [[Mexico]] (Sinaloa and Jalisco)
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*''C. c. mariae'': Tres Marías Islands (off western [[Mexico]])
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*''C. c. carneus'': ('''Long Crested''') Coastal western [[Mexico]] (Colima to Isthmus of Tehuántepec)
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*''C. c. cardinalis'': Eastern [[US]]
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*''C. c. floridanus'': South-eastern [[Georgia]] and peninsula [[Florida]]
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*''C. c. magnirostris'': South-eastern [[Texas]] and southern [[Louisiana]]
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*''C. c. canicaudus'': Western [[Oklahoma]] and western [[Texas]] to east-central [[Mexico]]
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*''C. c. coccineus'': Eastern [[Mexico]] (eastern San Luis Potosí, Veracruz, north-eastern Puebla and n Oaxaca)
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*''C. c. littoralis'': Lowlands of eastern [[Mexico]] (southern Veracruz and Tabasco)
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*''C. c. yucatanicus'': South-eastern [[Mexico]] (Yucatán Peninsula)
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*''C. c. flammiger'': South-eastern [[Mexico]] (southern Quintana Roo), [[Belize]] and Petén of northern [[Guatemala]]
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*''C. c. saturatus'': Cozumel Island (off Quintana Roo)
 
==Habitat==
 
==Habitat==
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Typical habitats are thickets and brushy areas, edges and clearings, riparian woodlands, parks, and residential areas.
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Suburban Woodlands and parks, mixed forests and forest edges, back yards, high desert.
 
==Behaviour==
 
==Behaviour==
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Cardinals feed on a variety of foods including seeds, leaf buds, flowers, berries, and fruit. Up to one-third of its summer diet can be insects. Its winter diet is 90 percent vegetable matter, especially large seeds. Winter flocks can be very large, up to 60 or 70 individuals in areas of abundance.
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[[Image:Febflyby.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Male<br />Photo by {{user|Deerbird|Deerbird}}<br />[[Kentucky]], February 2018]]
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Cardinals are noted for their loud, clear whistled songs, often sung from a high treetop song post. Females will counter sing, duetting with males—usually after the males have established territories and before nesting begins. Local variations and accents have been noted in cardinal songs.
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Winter flocks can be very large, up to 60 or 70 individuals in areas of abundance.
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====Diet====
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Their diet consists mostly of fruit and berries, buds, seeds and flowers, insects being included during the summer.
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====Breeding====
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The shallow cup-shaped nest is constructed mainly by the female from twigs, bark, grass and leaves. The clutch consists of 3-4 eggs which are incubated for 12-13 days. The young fledge at about 10 days. The youngsters are generally looked after by the male.
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There may be a second brood.
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====Vocalisation====
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'''Song''': a clear whistling song. Females will sing along with the male.<br />
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It appears there may be varying accents in different localities.
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==References==
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#{{Ref-Clements6thAug17}}#Cornell
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#BF Member observations
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#psu.edu
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{{ref}}
 
==External Links==
 
==External Links==
 
{{GSearch|Cardinalis+cardinalis}}  
 
{{GSearch|Cardinalis+cardinalis}}  
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[[Category:Birds]]
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<br />
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{{Video|Northern_Cardinal}}
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[[Category:Birds]] [[Category:Cardinalis]] [[Category:Videos]]

Revision as of 22:25, 18 February 2018

Adult Male
Photo by SulairDH
Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Cardinalis cardinalis

Identification

Adult Female
Photo by tetoneon
New Jersey, USA, July 2015

Male 22–23·5 cm (8½-9¼in), female 21–21·6 cm (8¼-8½ in)
All ages and sexes have a crest and large, conical bill
Male

  • All red with black mask and chin
  • Wings have some gray
  • Orange bill

Female

  • Brown overall with some red in wings, face, and tail
  • Red bill

Juvenile
Similar to female but bill is dark instead of red.

Distribution

United States and Mexico.

Taxonomy

Subspecies

Juvenile Female
Photo by Larry D Smith
Juvenile Male
Photo by Larry D Smith

There are 18 subspecies[1]:

  • C. c. superbus: Extremee California to Arizona, south-western New Mexico and northern Sonora
  • C. c. seftoni: Central Baja California (south to latitude 27°N)
  • C. c. igneus: Southern Baja California (north to latitude 27°N)
  • C. c. clintoni: Isla Cerralvo (Gulf of California)
  • C. c. townsendi: Isla Tiburón (Sea of Cortés) and adjacent coastal Sonora
  • C. c. affinis: Western Mexico (south-eastern Sonora to south-western Chihuahua and western Durango)
  • C. c. sinaloensis: Coastal western Mexico (Sinaloa and Jalisco)
  • C. c. mariae: Tres Marías Islands (off western Mexico)
  • C. c. carneus: (Long Crested) Coastal western Mexico (Colima to Isthmus of Tehuántepec)
  • C. c. cardinalis: Eastern US
  • C. c. floridanus: South-eastern Georgia and peninsula Florida
  • C. c. magnirostris: South-eastern Texas and southern Louisiana
  • C. c. canicaudus: Western Oklahoma and western Texas to east-central Mexico
  • C. c. coccineus: Eastern Mexico (eastern San Luis Potosí, Veracruz, north-eastern Puebla and n Oaxaca)
  • C. c. littoralis: Lowlands of eastern Mexico (southern Veracruz and Tabasco)
  • C. c. yucatanicus: South-eastern Mexico (Yucatán Peninsula)
  • C. c. flammiger: South-eastern Mexico (southern Quintana Roo), Belize and Petén of northern Guatemala
  • C. c. saturatus: Cozumel Island (off Quintana Roo)

Habitat

Suburban Woodlands and parks, mixed forests and forest edges, back yards, high desert.

Behaviour

Male
Photo by Deerbird
Kentucky, February 2018

Winter flocks can be very large, up to 60 or 70 individuals in areas of abundance.

Diet

Their diet consists mostly of fruit and berries, buds, seeds and flowers, insects being included during the summer.

Breeding

The shallow cup-shaped nest is constructed mainly by the female from twigs, bark, grass and leaves. The clutch consists of 3-4 eggs which are incubated for 12-13 days. The young fledge at about 10 days. The youngsters are generally looked after by the male.

There may be a second brood.

Vocalisation

Song: a clear whistling song. Females will sing along with the male.
It appears there may be varying accents in different localities.

References

  1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
  2. Cornell
  3. BF Member observations
  4. psu.edu

Recommended Citation

External Links


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