In some states of the USA, one small but very beautiful bird is recognized as a symbol . It is also called very representatively - the cardinal bird. This is a very loud and important name for such a small creation of nature. What did this bird deserve such respect? Beautiful singing or bright, cheerful coloring? Who preys on the red cardinal and what does he eat? You can find answers to these and other questions in this article.
What do cardinals look like
The Northern Cardinal is a small bird living in Canada, the USA and Mexico. Its other name is the red cardinal or the virgin cardinal. Because, in addition to her beautiful appearance, this baby also has a chic voice, she is also often called the virgin nightingale.
The most famous distinguishing feature of this bird is its bright red plumage. The most beautiful males. Their feathers are bright crimson, and around the beak and eyes they are black. It seems that he is wearing a mysterious black mask, which gives the cardinal special mystery. Their paws are also reddish brown.
Females are much less bright, mostly they have a grayish-brown color of feathers. Red blotches are present only on the wings. But from this they do not become less beautiful.
The dimensions of the red cardinal rarely exceed 23–25 cm, and the wingspan can reach 30 cm. They also weigh a little: a large adult male barely reaches 50 grams.
Where is such beauty
Red Cardinal - a bird with a bright plumage and a beautiful voice. The territory of many eastern states of America is considered to be its natural habitat, and cardinals can also be found in Mexico, Canada and Guatemala.
At the beginning of the eighteenth century, the Virgin Cardinals were artificially brought to Bermuda. They liked the nature there, so they enjoy living there today.
The Virgin Cardinal was also artificially bred in California and Hawaii. The experiment was successful, the birds acclimatized well and took root.
The first legend of the cardinal
The Indians of North America have their own theories, or rather, beautiful legends telling about how the red cardinal got his elegant plumage.
The first one is like that. Once a wolf wanted to hunt for a cunning raccoon. Saving his skin, the raccoon hid in a bush by the stream and hid. Feeling very thirsty, the wolf went to the water and saw in the waves a reflection of his future prey. Without thinking that he sees only the reflection of a raccoon in the water, the wolf jumped on him and almost drowned.
With great difficulty, the predator got out of the water onto the shore and fell asleep from fatigue. While he was sleeping, a cunning raccoon crept up to him and blindfolded his eyes with clay. When the wolf woke up, he could not open his eyes and thought he was blind. Out of despair, he sobbed over the entire forest, but no one wanted to help him.
A little bird heard the wailing, she flew to the rescue and removed the clay from the eyes of a predator. Gray wanted to thank his savior. He led her to the red rocks and painted the plumage of a bird there. Since then, the cardinal has such beautiful raspberry feathers.
Legend number 2
There is another legend according to which the red cardinal is the daughter of the Sun. Once the Sun was offended by people because when they look at it, they always squint. From resentment, it began to fry so much that many people died.
The sorcerer intervened in the situation. He said that in order for things to work out, the Sun needs to be killed. For this purpose, he turned two men into a serpent and sent them to the luminary. But it turned out that it was not the Sun itself that suffered from the snake venom, but his beloved daughter. Then the star was offended and forever left the firmament.
The heat was asleep, but there was complete darkness, people were again unhappy and went to the sorcerer. He said that in order for the Sun to forgive them, his beloved daughter must be returned from the world of the dead. The sorcerer gave people a special box to carry it, and ordered in no case to open the lid on the road. People stole the daughter of the Sun from the dead, put him in a box and carried back, but along the way she began to complain and cry that she was suffocating. Then the porters opened the lid for a second to let in a little air, and then slammed it shut, but that didn't help.
When they came to the luminary, it turned out that the box was empty. Then people remembered that at the time when they opened the lid, a small beautiful bird fluttered around them. It was in her that the girl turned.
The behavior of birds in nature
Most often, the red cardinal settles where people live nearby - in gardens and parks. It can also live in forest zones, in swamps and in bushes.
The main natural enemies of these beautiful birds are larger birds of prey: hawks, owls, shrikes. Squirrels, chipmunks and snakes also harm the cardinals - they spoil and destroy eggs and chicks left unattended.
Nutrition and Reproduction
The red cardinal is quite unpretentious in food. Berries, various seeds and crops serve him as food. With pleasure, he can enjoy a cicada, a grasshopper, various bugs and even snails. If you place a feeder near the habitat of the red cardinal, he will not pick and eat any gourmet food offered with gratitude.
The red cardinal is a monogamous bird, he chooses a companion for life together once and does not change his preferences. The female Virgin Cardinal herself builds a nest for future offspring. Usually she lays 2–4 eggs in one clutch and hatch the babies for about 2 weeks.
A caring “dad” feeds his chosen one and even sometimes replaces her in the process of hatching. But when the chicks are born, the process of education passes "in the paws and beak" of the father.