Macaulay Library Photos for Northern Cardinal
Top-rated photos submitted to the Macaulay Library via eBird. Note: Our content editors have not confirmed the species identification for these photos.
SPECIES
Northern Cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis Scientific name definitions
Sylvia L. Halkin, Daniel P. Shustack, M. Susan DeVries, Jodie M. Jawor, and Susan U. Linville
Version: 2.0 — Published February 12, 2021
Version: 2.0 — Published February 12, 2021
Account navigation Account navigation
Multimedia
Powered by Macaulay Library and eBird
Welcome to Birds of the World!
You are currently viewing one of the free accounts available in our complimentary tour of Birds of the World. In this courtesy review, you can access all the life history articles and the multimedia galleries associated with this account.
For complete access to all accounts, a subscription is required.
Already a subscriber? Sign in
Photos from this Account
© Matthew Plante
Male
Large, long-tailed songbird with a short, very thick bill and a prominent crest. Males are brilliant red with a black mask and throat.
© Suzie McCann
Female
Large, crested songbird with a short, thick bill. Females are are pale brown overall with warm reddish tinges in the wings, tail, and crest.
© Peter Finley
Juvenile
Juveniles are similar to females, but have a gray to black bill.
© Andrew Lyall
Female
Some birds lose all the feathers from their head at the same time, remaining bald until the feathers grow back.
© William Kidwell
Male
A plump, brilliant red songbird with a crest that is common in yards and suburban areas.
© Tom Amico
Male
Often sits with a hunched-over posture and with the tail pointed straight down.
© Paul Tavares
Female
Year-round resident that adds color to winter landscapes in the East.
© Wen Xu
Male
Found in backyards, parks, woodlots, and shrubby forest edges.
© Susan Carpenter
Northern Cardinal hatchlings at about 1–2 days old, with natal down.
Hatchlings partially covered with gray down, 6–11 mm long, on coronal, occipital, middorsal, pelvic, scapular, femoral, and greater secondary-covert and median secondary-covert regions at hatching
© Eric Cormier
Northern Cardinal nestlings at about 7–8 days old, with wing feathers bursting from sheaths.
© Eric Cormier
Fledgling Northern Cardinal.
Plumage is similar to Definitive Basic female but duller, crest and flight-feathers more brownish. Juvenile body feathers (especially undertail coverts) filamentous due to lower barb density.
© David Lang
Juvenile Northern Cardinal.
Less red plumage apparent on the body. Juvenile outer primaries and rectrices narrower and more tapered at tips than in later plumages
© Brenda Bull
Juvenile Northern Cardinal.
© Jonathan Irons
Formative male Northern Cardinal.
Note molt limits among feathers of the upperwing and tail, and retained worn, narrow, or brownish-tinged flight feathers contrasting with newly molted uniformly red to reddish flight feathers.
© irina shulgina
Female with double layered set of butt-end plastic leg bands.
© Daniel Shustack
Definitive Basic female Northern Cardinal.
Upperparts plain grayish olive or buffy grayish; head with conspicuous crest, variably red to tipped red. Upperwing greater coverts and secondaries duller red than primaries and rectrices.
© terence zahner
Presumed Definitive Basic female Northern Cardinal.
Underparts pale fulvous or buffy, but some individuals can show nearly white coloration on abdomen. Plumage often with small numbers of red or red-tinged feathers above eye, and among auriculars and feathers of the upper breast and flanks.
© Michael Foster
Definitive Basic female Northern Cardinal showing a large and dark melanin-based face mask.
Also shown is the random distribution of red, carotenoid-colored feathers that occur on the face and breast as well as in the crest. Adult female captured in Bloomington, Indiana.
© Jodie Jawor
Female Northern Cardinal in flight.
Underwing secondary coverts light orange to light red.
© Jonathan Eckerson
Definitive Basic male Northern Cardinal.
Plumage primarily vermilion red, with black face mask that surrounds bill, extends back to eye, and covers chin and throat. Head with conspicuous crest.
© Ryan Sanderson
Definitive Basic male Northern Cardinal.
Upperwing greater coverts and secondaries duller red than primaries and rectrices.
© Adam Zahm
Definitive Basic male Northern Cardinal showing extent of melanin-based face mask from the front.
Male captured in Dayton, Ohio.
© Jodie Jawor
Gray tips on dorsal feathers of male in early March.
Contour feathers of back and neck have olive-gray margins that wear away by early spring; tertials and rectrices may also have olive-grayish margins, and flanks include grayish feathers. Rump and uppertail coverts not distinctly lighter in color than back.
© Bob Levy
Definitive Basic male Northern Cardinal in late May.
Note lack of gray tips on back feathers in early summer.
© Karen Lebing
Definitive Basic male Northern Cardinal in late November.
Red brightest on auricular region, cheeks, and breast. Underwing secondary coverts light orange to light red.
© Tom Johnson
Example of mixed plumage in Northern Cardinal.
Apparent female with mix of male and female plumage, captured when flushed from June nest where it appeared to be incubating eggs. This bird had an incubation patch, and the nest produced three fledglings, fed by both this individual and its social mate, a male with definitive male coloration.
© Daniel Shustack
Possible bilateral gynandromorph.
© James R. Hill, III
Possible bilateral gynandromorph.
© James R. Hill, III
Possible bilateral gynandromorph.
Note, red on one side and gray olive on the other side.
© Santiago Castro
Possible bilateral gynandromorph.
© Pat Wenzel
Possible bilateral gynandromorph.
© Jane Gear
Leucistic female Northern Cardinal.
© john guillaume
Partially leucistic Northern Cardinal.
© Lee Payne
Partially leucistic Northern Cardinal.
© James Wheat
Non-phaeomelanic female Northern Cardinal.
Lacks all of the warm buff tones of phaeomelanin, but retains dark gray eumelanin in the wing, tail, and face.
© Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren
Non-phaeomelanic female Northern Cardinal with wildtype male and female for comparison.
© Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren
Non-eumelanic female Northern Cardinal.
Lacking eumelanin. Note lack of the blackish face mask and the greatly reduced pigment in wings and tail.
© Caroline Lambert
Non-eumelanic female Northern Cardinal.
© Tom Younkin
Possible non-eumelanic male Northern Cardinal.
© Heath Harlan
Male Northern Cardinal with aberrant plumage.
© Jerry Green
Male Northern Cardinal with aberrant plumage.
© charlie s
Female Northern Cardinal with dilute plumage.
Both melanins are produced and deposited in the feathers, but at low concentrations.
© Bee Jenkins
Molting male with loosely attached patches of contour feathers.
© Bob Levy
Molting male with loosely attached patches of contour feathers.
© Bob Levy
Male Northern Cardinal undergoing Preformative Molt.
© Karen Lebing
Molting male with patches of new quills on head.
© Bob Levy
Molting female with food in beak approaching begging fledgling.
© Bob Levy
Male Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies superbus).
Largest subspecies; bill "relatively stouter," with black of lores in male not meeting across forehead.
© Dubi Shapiro
Male Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies superbus).
© Chris Rohrer
Female Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies superbus).
© Tim DeJonghe
Female Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies superbus).
© Ed Thomas
Juvenile Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies superbus).
© Arlene Ripley
Male Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies igneus).
Smaller than superbus, and bill relatively shorter and thicker.
© Steven Mlodinow
Female Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies igneus).
© Steven Mlodinow
Juvenile Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies igneus).
© Steven Mlodinow
Male (presumably subspecies affinis).
© Diane Drobka
Female (presumably subspecies affinis).
© Diane Drobka
Male (presumably subspecies sinaloensis).
© Adrián Gutiérrez
Male (presumably subspecies sinaloensis).
Male more pure and intense red than in other subspecies.
© Manuel Velasco
Female (presumably subspecies sinaloensis).
Female darker than in other subspecies.
© Manuel Velasco
Male (subspecies mariae).
© Javier Cruz Nieto
Male (subspecies mariae).
© Gabriel Tellez
Female (subspecies mariae).
© Gabriel Tellez
Male Northern Cardinal (subspecies cardinalis).
© Andy Raupp
Female Northern Cardinal (subspecies cardinalis).
© Brenda Bull
Juvenile Northern Cardinal (subspecies cardinalis).
© Brenda Bull
Male Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies floridanus).
Both sexes smaller and darker than cardinalis; bill similar.
© Etienne Pracht
Female Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies floridanus).
© Claudia Brasileiro
Juvenile Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies floridanus).
© Susan Young
Male (presumably subspecies magnirostris).
Larger and heavier bill, and larger face mask, than those of cardinalis, floridanus, or canicaudus. Otherwise most like floridanus, but wing slightly longer, tail shorter, and foot and tarsus larger; red of male head and underparts lighter than on floridanus, but more intense than on cardinalis.
© Russlyn M
Female (presumably subspecies magnirostris).
Middle of female belly more whitish than on cardinalis.
© Jan Thom
Female (presumably subspecies magnirostris).
© Jeff Sexton
Male (presumably subspecies canicaudus).
Wings shorter and bill slightly larger than in cardinalis, males more intense red, black band across forehead narrower.
© Alan Versaw
Female (presumably subspecies canicaudus).
Females grayer above and paler beneath than cardinalis females, with less distinct face mask.
© Jason Leifester
Juvenile (presumably subspecies canicaudus).
© Vicki Wilmarth
Male (presumably subspecies coccineus).
Bill larger and male plumage more intensely colored than cardinalis and contour feathers almost lacking grayish or brownish margins (other subspecies have grayish or brownish margins in newly molted feathers
© Jairo Ortigoza del Angel
Female (presumably subspecies coccineus).
© Adrianh Martinez Orozco
Juvenile (presumably subspecies coccineus).
© Jairo Ortigoza del Angel
Male (presumably subspecies littoralis).
Similar in size and plumage to coccineus, but male plumage more purplish.
© Uriel Mtnez
Female (presumably subspecies littoralis).
© Uriel Mtnez
Male (presumably subspecies yucatanicus).
Similar to but smaller than coccineus; adult male slightly lighter red.
© Jeremy Coleman
Female (presumably subspecies yucatanicus).
© Luis Trinchan
Male (presumably subspecies flammiger).
Similar in size to yucatanicus; male underparts and edges of wing coverts and primaries more intense red than on yucatanicus, and dorsal plumage has purplish tinge, darker than back color of littoralis.
© Christian Ramirez
Female (presumably subspecies flammiger).
Female underparts heavily washed with red from throat at least to breast, whereas in yucatanicus, red is absent or confined to a small area just below the black throat.
© Hernan Riverol
Male Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies saturatus).
Smaller than cardinalis. Feet larger than those of yucatanicus; males may be indistinguishable from flammiger males.
© Luis Guillermo
Female Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies saturatus).
Adult female breast much less red than that of yucatanicus or flammiger.
© Daniel Fitzgerald
Male Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies carneus).
Upper mandible shallower than that of any other subspecies, with less sinuated tomia; crest feathers longer and stiffer than those of other subspecies, and distinctly outlined, giving crest edges a jagged appearance.
© Alex Luna
Female Northern Cardinal (presumed subspecies carneus).
Female with black face mask.
© Robin Oxley
Male Northern Cardinal with praying mantis, which it eventually consumed.
© Benjamin Hack
Female Northern Cardinal drinking.
© Dina Perry
Male Northern Cardinal drinking.
© Eric Gofreed
Male Northern Cardinal bathing.
© Sue Smith
Male Northern Cardinal bathing.
© Doug Hommert
Pair roosting about .5 m apart.
© Bob Levy
Male Northern Cardinal courtship feeding female.
Male feeds female during courtship and incubation.
© Homer Gardin
Male Northern Cardinal courtship feeding female.
© Gloria 🕊
Female in Precopulatory Display.
When ready to mate, female gives Precopulatory Display: points beak and tail upward, lowers and quivers wings, fluffs breast feathers, and separates ventral feathers to expose cloacal opening.
© Gloria 🕊
Eastern ratsnake (Pantherophis alleghaniensis) preying upon Northern Cardinal nestling.
© Michelle Kienholz
Female Northern Cardinal with nesting material.
Female alone builds nest.
© Gloria 🕊
Female Northern Cardinal with nesting material.
© Tom and Dawn Abbott
Northern Cardinal nest in bush.
Nests concealed in forks of twigs and small branches; nest height above ground 0.25–12 m.
© Eric Cormier
Northern Cardinal nest in bush.
© West Tennessee Historical Data
Northern Cardinal nest with eggs.
Note, plastic incorporated into outer layer of nest.
© Anna Kilian
Northern Cardinal nest with eggs.
Nest is not attached to substrate; it is wedged into position. Bowl-shaped structure is composed of 4 layers: rough outer material, leafy mat, grapevine bark, and grassy lining.
© Michael S Taylor
Northern Cardinal nest with eggs.
© Tomáš Grim
Female Northern Cardinal on nest.
© Lisa Owens
Northern Cardinal nest.
Near Tulsa, Oklahoma. 15 April 1917. Ruler is 8 cm.; photographer Rene Corado.
Northern Cardinal eggs.
Ground color ranges from grayish white to buffy white to greenish white. Speckled or spotted with pale gray to medium brown marks. Speckling varies from sparse to thick, obscuring ground or forming blotches. Last egg in each clutch is always more lightly marked with spots and streaks than the others.
© Robert Bruss
Northern Cardinal eggs.
In most cases, spots tend to concentrate at larger end of egg.
© Nikki Olivier
Northern Cardinal eggs.
© Claudia Graham
Northern Cardinal clutch.
Philadelphia Co., Pennsylvania. 15 May.; photographer Rene Corado.
Female Northern Cardinal on nest.
Incubation apparently by female alone; males have been observed to sit on nests for short periods. Young are brooded exclusively by female throughout nestling period.
© Alyssa Jones
Female Northern Cardinal with young at nest.
© David Ramage
Male Northern Cardinal with young at nest.
© Keith Kennedy
Northern Cardinals with young at nest.
© Sheri Thompson
Northern Cardinal nest and egg (left) and Brown-headed Cowbird egg (right).
© Babette Cichanowicz
Northern Cardinal nest and eggs and Brown-headed Cowbird egg (center).
© Jon Little
Male Northern Cardinal feeding Brown-headed Cowbird chick.
© Susan Szeszol