Cardinals and Grosbeaks

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BIRDS



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Cardinals

Northern Cardinal

(Cardinalis cardinalis) COMMON: Year round Resident. Found nearly everywhere in Western New York. Feeder Bird.
The Northern Cardinal is a fairly large, long-tailed songbird with a short, very thick bill and a prominent crest. Cardinals often sit with a hunched-over posture and with the tail pointed straight down. Male cardinals are brilliant red all over, with a reddish bill and black face immediately around the bill. Females are pale brown overall with warm reddish tinges in the wings, tail, and crest. They have the same black face and red-orange bill. Northern Cardinals tend to sit low in shrubs and trees or forage on or near the ground, often in pairs. They are common at bird feeders but may be inconspicuous away from them, at least until you learn their loud, metallic chip note. Look for Northern Cardinals in inhabited areas such as backyards, parks, woodlots, and shrubby forest edges. Northern Cardinals nest in dense tangles of shrubs and vines.

Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) ♀(l.)/♂(r.) - © David Malak
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) ♂ - © David Malak


Indigo Bunting

(Passerina cyanea)
UNCOMMON: Migrates Indigo Buntings are small (roughly sparrow-sized), stocky birds with short tails and short, thick, conical bills. In flight, the birds appear plump with short, rounded tails.
A breeding male Indigo Bunting is blue all over, with slightly richer blue on his head and a shiny, silver-gray bill. Females are basically brown, with faint streaking on the breast, a whitish throat, and sometimes a touch of blue on the wings, tail, or rump. Immature males are patchy blue and brown. Male Indigo Buntings sing from treetops, shrubs, and telephone lines all summer. This species eats insects, seeds, and berries, and can be attracted to backyards with thistle or nyjer seed. While perching, they often swish their tails from side to side. Fairly solitary during breeding season, Indigo Buntings form large flocks during migration and on their wintering grounds. Look for Indigo Buntings in weedy and brushy areas, especially where fields meet forests. They love edges, hedgerows, overgrown patches, and brushy roadsides. When not singing from the tallest perches in the area, they can often be seen foraging among seed-laden shrubs and grasses.

Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea) ♂ - © David Malak

Note: For the bird known as a Snow Bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis), see Buntings.

Grosbeaks

Rose-Breasted Grosbeak

(Pheucticus ludovicianus)

Rose-Breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus) ♂ - © David Malak
Rose-Breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus) ♂ - © David Malak
Rose-Breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus) ♀ - © David Malak