Species

Northern cardinal

Cardinalis cardinalis

The bright red, crested songbird of every Georgia yard, singing year-round and feeding its mate in courtship.

Photo Rhododendrites (opens in a new tab) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab)

At a glance

Size: About 21 to 23 cm long
Weight: About 42 to 48 g
Habitat: Woodland edges, thickets, suburbs and gardens
Diet: Seeds, fruit and insects
In Georgia: Abundant resident statewide
Voice: Loud whistles "cheer-cheer-cheer" and "birdie-birdie-birdie"; a sharp "chip"
Rabies vector: No

Identification

Male: Bright red with a crest and black face
Female: Warm brown with red tinges and a red bill
Told apart from: Summer tanager, which has no crest or black face
Where to look: Almost any yard or thicket

Behaviour

Cardinals are territorial and males attack their reflections in windows and mirrors. In courtship, males feed seeds to females beak to beak. Both sexes sing.

Why they matter

The northern cardinal is the state bird of seven US states. Its spread north over the last century, helped by suburban shrubs and feeders, shows how birds respond to landscapes people create.

Reproduction and lifecycle

Nest — A cup in a dense shrub or tangle
Eggs — Usually three or four
Incubation — About 11 to 13 days
Chicks — Fed by both parents
Flight — At about 9 to 11 days
Lifespan — A few years; wild birds over fifteen years are recorded

Living around people

A cardinal attacking a window is fighting its reflection; covering the outside of the window stops it.
Dense shrubs in gardens give them nest sites.

Misconceptions

A cardinal at the window is trying to get in or bringing a message. It is defending its territory against its reflection.

Related species

Seasonal activity

When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.

Breeding and active nests by month for this species
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Breeding	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Active nests	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Notes	Pairs	Singing	Nesting	Nesting	Chicks	Second broods	Third broods	Young fledging	Present	Flocks forming	Flocks	Flocks

Where it lives

Recorded in 69 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.

Canada

If you found one

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