My Local Friends – II
Today I have to tell you a bit about another bunch of dear birds that have been my all year regulars since I moved to my house in Georgia.
I’m referring to the Northern Cardinals. They are so good looking birds, both, male and female. I’m so used to see them daily that sometimes is still dark outside at dawn and looking out the window to the deck and I can see one or two cardinals waiting for me to refill the feeders. Of course if they see me though the window somehow a bunch more will appear!
Here’s some more information about them for the readers that might be unfamiliar with these birds.
The Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) is a North American bird in the genus Cardinalis. It can be found in southern Canada, through the eastern United States from Maine to Texas and south through Mexico. It is found in woodlands, gardens, shrublands, and swamps.
The northern cardinal is a mid-sized songbird with a body length of 8.3 in. 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 male is a vibrant red, while the female is a dull red-brown shade. The northern cardinal is mainly granivorous, but also feeds on insects and fruit. The male behaves territorially, marking out his territory with song. During courtship, the male feeds seed to the female beak-to-beak. A clutch of three to four eggs is laid, and two to four clutches are produced each year.
Text and photographs © HJ Ruiz – Avian101
H.J. Ruiz - Avian101 
One of my favorites. Listen to their song it will give you ‘cheer..cheer..cheer’!
Cardinals are very popular for many reasons,being cheerful is one! Thanks Julie! 🙂
Oh you east coasters luck out when it comes to the cardinals, so so beautiful. I chuckled at them waiting in the morning for you to fill the feeder. Great post HJ! 🙂
You might think it’s a fictional story but I’m the person to talk to about anecdotes, not mishaps but what I call ‘special events’ in my life. Everywhere I’ve been there’s one of ‘those’, that I will remember the rest of my life! Thanks Jet! 🙂
Thanks for the information on those lovely birds.
I’m always happy to write about them. Thank you very much Susan! 🙂
Such wonderful birds! Of course, we don’t have them here out west (or the blue jay) but I did get to enjoy them when I visited Michigan. Lovely photos! Thanks for sharing! 😊
I’m glad that you like them Julie! Thanks so much for your comment! 🙂
What a great capture as usual, and I loved learning more about them 🙂
Thank you very much Neha! Of course there will be more! 🙂
Lovely shots of beautiful birds in glorious early morning sunlight. Like Jet I enjoyed hearing about the birds waiting to be fed before it gets light. Some of our local birds watch me when I go out to fill the feeders and they make special calls to each other. I am sure they are telling their friends that food is on its way. As soon as my back is turned they are on the bird tables.
Thanks so much dear Clare for sharing. What you describe is exactly what I go through every morning and I love it. Makes me feel that I contribute with Nature. 🙂
Just back home from a visit to see the family in Maine HJ, and although we have seen them on previous visits, we didn’t see a single Cardinal this year. Maybe I wasn’t looking hard enough.
It was a great trip though. Dave.
That’s great to hear Dave, thanks for sharing! 🙂
Gorgeous birds, great pictures.
Thanks so much Tom! 🙂
Cardinals are always one of my favorites!
In response to Dave, Maine is approximately the same latitude as our place in northern Michigan and we rarely see cardinals that far north. They are daily visitors at our home in southeastern Michigan, but in the northern part of the state I have only seen them a small number of times, which may be why he didn’t see any on his visit to Maine. Just a thought. 🙂
Thanks for your helpful information Amy! 🙂
My favorite songbirds! Beautiful shots!
Thank you very much Tiny! 🙂