Attract Northern Cardinals to your yard all
year long with feeders, water and shrubs.
Male Northern Cardinals are all red with
the exception of the black patch around its thick
triangular or conical bill. Add to this the pointed
crest and it is instantly identifiable by bird
enthusiasts.
photo by Hollingsworth us
Wildlife
The female is brownish with some red on the wings and
tail. Just like the male the female has a dark face,
and heavy red bill, good
for eating seeds.
Adults are 7 ½ to 9 inches Young birds look much like
the female, with darker bills.
by Menke, Dave US Wildlife
The Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis
cardinalis) is a year round resident of the Eastern U.S.,
and continues to spread north. It is so well liked that more
states have adopted it as their state
bird than any other bird. These states are: Illinois,
Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia, and West
Virginia.
Sound
The birds have several variations of repeated whistles (whe-cheer-cheer
or whertee-whertee-wherte).
Note on some browsers you will not be able to see or use the
drop down sound list. If you can't use it try the sound
link below.
Because Cardinals are not migratory you can attract them
to your yard all year long. There bright red plumage is
striking in snow. Get a Cardinal puzzle.
Many kinds of shrubs and trees will attract
them to your yard. Some are, blueberry, cherry, dogwood,
mulberry sumac and many more.
In addition to eating any fruit these may provide they may
nest and raise their young in the dense shrubs.
Feeders and Food
Natural foods
In the wild, Cardinals eat fruit, seed, and insects. Their
heavy conical bills allow them to eat a wider range of seeds
than birds with smaller bills such as sparrows or finches.
They search from the ground for food and can
be heard foraging in bushes when they are out of sight. As
they hope around they will scratch the ground with both feet
searching for insects and other food
Feeders
If you put out feeders they will eat almost any kind of fruit
and seeds you offer them. Good food choices are cracked corn,
millet, bread, nutmeats, safflower, peanut butter mixes and
suet. A favorite is un-hulled black-oil sunflower seeds.
If you watch them at the feeder you will see them touch beaks
as they offer each other seeds.
Water
In addition to food provide a source of water for drinking
and bathing.
Many birds will come to clean their feathers in a birdbath.
Running or dripping water will also attract them. Birds love
to bathe in a slow sprinkler.
Nesting and Breeding
Once he develops a territory the male
cardinals will aggressively defend it. They have been known
to attack their reflections in windows, mistaking them for
other males.
Cardinals will mate for life and remain together throughout
the entire year.
Breeding season begins in late March to early April.
Cardinals will breed in a wide variety of areas.
They prefer to build their nest in shrubbery
or a thickly branched tree. The female will build a cup
shaped nest in 3 to 9 days. Nesting
materials are twigs, weeds, and grasses; bark fibers, dead
leaves, moss, rags and other debris.
There will be between two and five white or
greenish eggs with dark streaks and spots on them. Usually
the female will incubate the eggs for 11 to 13 days. The
young will be fed by both parents for around 10 days and will
be able to fly well in about 20 days.
Two, three or four broods may be raised in a breeding season.
The male will tend the brood while the female starts the next
brood.
Northern Cardinals
Nesting
materials are twigs, weeds, and grasses; bark fibers, dead
leaves, moss, rags and other debris.
