Northern Cardinal
Family:
Cardinalidae (cardinals) in the order Passeriformes
Description:
Adult male upperparts are bright red with darker wings and tail. the head is crested. The area around the bill is black, and the large conical bill is red. Underparts are bright red. Females are buffy tan below and grayish brown above, otherwise similar to male with reddish tinges in wings, tail and crest. Immatures have a dark bill, and immature females lack the reddish tint to the plumage. Songs are clear, up- or down-slurred whistles. The call is a sharp “chip.”
Size:
Length: 8¾ inches (tip of bill to tip of tail).
Habitat and conservation:
"Redbirds" can be found in nearly every hedge, thicket or berry patch during the summer whether in rural areas, towns or suburbs.
Foods:
Forages on the ground or in shrubs for insects, spiders, seeds, fruits and berries. It is a frequent visitor to bird feeders for sunflower and other seeds.
Distribution in Missouri:
Statewide. They don’t migrate, though they may move around locally when conditions are bad.
Status:
Common permanent resident.
Life cycle:
Cardinals sing from early February through August. Males whistle from the tops of saplings and, often, big trees. Cardinals nest in thickets, dense shrubs and undergrowth, laying 3–4 eggs in a nest built of stems, twigs, bark, grass and paper, lined with fine grass and hair. Incubation lasts 12–13 days, and the young are fledged in 9–10 days. There are usually two broods a year, though up to four are possible.
Human connections:
This striking, common and conspicuous bird is especially loved in the St. Louis area, where it has been the mascot of that city’s professional baseball team since 1900. It is also the state bird of seven states and the mascot of many other sports teams as well.
Ecosystem connections:
Many predators eat cardinals and their eggs and young. Cardinals and other birds that eat seeds and fruits play an important role in helping to disperse seeds, which can pass through the bird’s digestive system intact some distance from the parent plant. 
Shortened URL
mdc.mo.gov/node/3846
