Before moving to our current home last year, our ability to identify the wildlife in our backyard consisted of squirrels and street cars. Now, in our wooded yard, we are finding plenty of little critters that visit. We have been having fun identifying the birds, especially.
I’d like to share some of the birds that come up to our dining room window. Do any of these birds visit you, too?
Northern Cardinal
The cardinal was the easiest bird for us to identify, and really the first one that grabbed our attention. The brilliant red color is hard to ignore. It is almost regal in the way it perches in the evergreen in our backyard. When it comes to the feeder it generally has it all to itself, although it does make way for the morning doves. it doesn’t bully the smaller birds. The male cardinals are more plentiful than the females, unless it is just that the female cardinals are better hidden. Sometimes we will notice up to five male cardinals at the feeder, with a lone female cardinal just waiting in the branches. The cardinals went away for two months in the coldest of winter, but with spring approaching, they are back and eating well.
The Northern Cardinal is the state bird for seven states in the USA. It is a relatively recent arrival to the New England and the Mid Atlantic region, arriving in these locations in the mid-20th century.
The cardinal’s song is very pleasant. It was one of the first sounds we heard in our yard and had no idea which bird made it. The song is a series of clear whistles that are a little down-slurred and end in a trill. The song sounds like the bird is singing, “Cheer, cheer, cheer, what, what, what, what.” It has a sharp chirp when it is calling to other birds.
Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.
Related Articles:
The National Great Backyard Bird Count