![]() ![]() The plumage color of the males is produced from carotenoid pigments in the diet. ![]() They are brown above and red-brown below, with brick-colored crest, forehead, wings, and tail. Young birds, both male and female, show coloring similar to the adult female until the fall, when they molt and grow adult feathers. Both sexes possess prominent raised crests and bright coral-colored beaks. The face mask of the female is gray to black and is less defined than that of the male. The female is fawn-colored, with mostly grayish-brown tones and a slight reddish tint on the wings, crest, and tail feathers. The color becomes duller and darker on the back and wings. The adult male is a brilliant crimson red color with a black face mask over the eyes, extending to the upper chest. The male averages slightly larger than the female. The northern cardinal is a mid-sized songbird with a body length of 21–23.5 cm (8.3–9.3 in) and a wingspan of 25–31 cm (9.8–12.2 in). The term "northern" in the common name refers to its range, as it is the northernmost cardinal species. The common name, as well as the scientific name, of the northern cardinal refers to the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church, who wear distinctive red robes and caps. In 1983, the scientific name was changed again to Cardinalis cardinalis and the common name was changed to "northern cardinal", to avoid confusion with the several other species also termed cardinals. In 1918, the scientific name was changed to Richmondena cardinalis to honor Charles Wallace Richmond, an American ornithologist. In 1838, it was placed in the genus Cardinalis and given the scientific name Cardinalis virginianus, which means "Virginia cardinal". It was initially included in the genus Loxia (as Loxia cardinalis), which now contains only crossbills. The northern cardinal was one of the many species originally described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. The northern cardinal is one of three birds in the genus Cardinalis and is included in the family Cardinalidae, which is made up of passerine birds found in North and South America. It was once prized as a pet, but its sale as a cage bird was banned in the United States by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. A clutch of three to four eggs is laid, and two to four clutches are produced each year. During courtship, the male feeds seed to the female beak-to-beak. ![]() The male behaves territorially, marking out his territory with song. The northern cardinal is mainly granivorous, but also feeds on insects and fruit. The male is a vibrant red, while the female is a reddish olive color. It has a distinctive crest on the head and a mask on the face which is black in the male and gray in the female. The northern cardinal is a mid-sized songbird with a body length of 21–23 cm (8.3–9.1 in). Its habitat includes woodlands, gardens, shrublands, and wetlands. It is also an introduced species in a few locations such as Bermuda and Hawaii. It can be found in southeastern Canada, through the eastern United States from Maine to Minnesota to Texas, New Mexico, southern Arizona, southern California, and south through Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala. The northern cardinal ( Cardinalis cardinalis) is a bird in the genus Cardinalis it is also known colloquially as the redbird, common cardinal, red cardinal, or just cardinal (which was its name prior to 1985). ![]()
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