Doo, Doo, Doo, Looking Out My Backdoor III: Northern Cardinal

Cardinals are hard to mistake for any other bird. The crest, black face and orange conical beak are good identifiers.  While they are pretty birds, they have nasty personalities. Males are very territorial and do not tolerate other males at almost any time of year, even during the non-breeding season. Because of the way they feed, they will sit on the feeder for long periods of time, chasing off any other birds that try to get a seed. So you get this "back-up" of birds sitting around watching them eat and waiting for them to leave. Female are no more sociable than males.

Females are not as colorful as males, although they are pretty in their own right. The strong conical beak is designed for cracking seeds, although during the summer, they also eat insects. Seeds like sunflower (which they love) naturally rest in their mouth vertically so that when they clamp down, the middle of the shell splits open. You'll see them spit the shell out the side of their mouth as they separate it from meat.

They molt after the nesting season so that by winter, they have a nice bright coat of feathers. This female's coloring is typical.

If you see one that looks like this photo but has a black beak, you are looking at an immature bird that may be male or female. Yes, I know, it looks like a cute bird but, don't be fooled!