SPECIES

Vermilion Cardinal Cardinalis phoeniceus Scientific name definitions

Adriana Rodríguez-Ferraro
Version: 2.0 — Published February 23, 2024

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Introduction

Ethno-ornithology

The Vermilion Cardinal, or "lisho," is an important cultural symbol for the Wayúu people of the Guajira Peninsula of northern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela (75, 50). In Wayúu lore, the first woman, Wolunka, had a toothed vagina that prevented her from reproducing with men. Two twins, Maayüi and Juyá, sought to remove the teeth. They came upon Wolunka who was bathing in a river in what is today the Parque Nacional Natural Macuira in Guajira, Colombia, and one shot an arrow at her vagina, which knocked the teeth out and caused Wolunka to bleed. Her blood stained the rock where she sat, and colored the river and the birds bathing in it, giving the Vermilion Cardinal its bright red plumage. This myth is variously used to explain menstruation, sexual reproduction, and the origin of the Wayúu people (75).

Recommended Citation

Rodríguez-Ferraro, A. (2024). Vermilion Cardinal (Cardinalis phoeniceus), version 2.0. In Birds of the World (F. Medrano and B. K. Keeney, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.vercar1.02