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Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)
Above: A male Northern Cardinal in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (12/21/2007).
Below: A male Northern Cardinal in my yard near Fort Smallwood, Maryland (5/16/2007).
Below: A male Northern Cardinal photographed in Cass Co., Indiana (12/2004).
Below: A female Northern Cardinal on Assateague Island, Maryland (11/11/2007).
Below: A female Northern Cardinal feeding below our feeder in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (3/1/2008).
Below: A female Northern Cardinal with a chipped bill and molting head feathers. Time for an extreme makeover.
Below: A male Northern Cardinal in our yard in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (7/8/2007).
Below: A female Northern Cardinal in Frederick Co., Maryland (11/4/2006).
Below: Recently fledged young (AA Co., Maryland, 7/14/2005).
Below four: While working through flocks of birds on Assateague, I found a new reason to appreciate cardinals. They feed on even the cruel, sharp seed heads that are more than happy to engulf your shoes and socks.
Below: A female Northern Cardinal arrives for brunch (Anne Arundel Co., Maryland, 3/7/2009).
Below: Male and female Northern Cardinals - Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (4/27/2012).
Below: A molting male Northern Cardinal in Anne Arundel Co., Maryland (9/15/2010).
Southwestern U.S.
Below: Male and female Southwestern-race Northern Cardinals at Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Arizona (1/6/2007).
Comments: The striking red plumage of the adult male cardinal makes this bird one of the most welcome visitors to yards and gardens. A common year-round resident in the eastern U.S., the Northern Cardinal is named for the brilliant red robes of cardinals of the preaching variety. It is also the state bird of all but four states in the nation. (OK, just of seven states.)