Northern Cardinal: how to recognise it
A bird of Europe, North America and Oceania. Learn the marks that make it easy to identify, then practise with real photographs in Lore.
Practise with real photosAll species guides
Photo © Laura Keene · CC BY-NC · iNaturalist · all photo credits
- Scientific name
- Cardinalis cardinalis
- Family
- Cardinals and Allies
- Size
- About 21–23 cm
- Habitat
- Thickets, gardens and woodland edges
- Found in
- Europe, North America and Oceania
The key marks
The male is bright red with a black face, a pointed crest and a thick orange-red bill. The female is warm buff-brown with red touches on wings and tail.
Voice
Clear, whistled phrases such as “cheer-cheer-cheer” and “what-cheer”.
Good to know
Unlike in most songbirds, the female also sings, often from the nest.
Where and when
You can expect to find it in thickets, gardens and woodland edges. It is especially common in Texas, the United States, Canada and Florida. Distribution changes with the seasons and from year to year, so check a recent local observation source before you go looking.