Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Female Northern Cardinal

 Female Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)

Although we do have a pair of Northern Cardinals in our yard, they rarely stick around long enough for me to take their photos. Here is a less-shy little lady willing to risk safety for seeds that someone sprinkled on a trail I visit often.  When I say "less shy" I mean I only had to wait for about 15 minutes for her to reappear after I first saw her and she spotted me.

Feeling a little braver

Tree sparrows and juncos appeared first. When she realized I wasn't going to move in any closer, she slowly - very slowly - moved from shrub branch to shrub branch and then finally to the path.  As you can see, she still kept an eye on me.

I am connecting to Stewart M's Wild Bird Wednesday HERE

57 comments:

  1. You captured her subtler beauty(as compared to the male) perfectly!

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  2. She is a pretty lady!!! One of my faves!

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  3. Musiał mieć trochę więcej odwagi, jeśli chciał brzuszek napełnić. Zdjęcia mu zrobiłaś śliczne. Pozdrawiam.
    He had to have a little more courage, if he wanted to fill the tummy. He did beautiful pictures. Yours.

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  4. she is a beauty and worth the wait... our cardinals have been singing for 2 hours now...

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  5. Such lovely shots! I photographed a female this past weekend, and had never really realized the beauty of the female before. Very nice!

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  6. Your patience was rewarded with some good photo's. She's a delight.

    Darla

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  7. Aren't they shy?! We have 6 blue jays in the tree. Mr. Cardinal is so shy, I cannot even open the door, many feet away from the feeder. Most of my photos are through the window!
    (ツ) from Cottage Country Ontario , E ON!

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  8. Shy but sweet, love her spot of red color!

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  9. Awww...don't you love them...I have many of them visiting our bird-feeder. What a great shot -- absolutely brilliant.

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  10. She is so pretty! Wonderful captures!

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  11. Beautiful shots of the lady cardinal!

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  12. Always nice to see the sweet female!

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  13. Love your first photo! Lovely bird and you captured a cute expression!

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  14. i think the ladies are just as pretty as their bright counterparts. :)

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  15. The females have such pretty colouration. You've captured this little lady beautifully!

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  16. Looks like you caught her fluffing up the snow a bit in the second photo. She is just as neat to look at as is her male counterpart.

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  17. You are a master behind your lens. The first lovely photo, just popped out at me, like I'm here, do you have a treat for me? So beautiful.

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  18. What a beautiful little girl she is!

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  19. Lovely little bird. Great shot!

    Warm greetings
    JetteMajken

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  20. These are great portraits! The cardinals in Texas were shy like yours, but the ones in my Louisiana back yard are not as skittish.

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  21. Wow! The cuteness so well captured.

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  22. Although the male cardinals are more flashy looking, I like the unusual markings of the female more. You got some great photos given how shy cardinals are.

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  23. She is a lovely lady and yes,she is watching you carefully.

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  24. Great photos of a very beautiful bird. I'm glad you had the patience to wait for her.

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  25. We had so many cardinals on our feeders in North Carolina. I really miss them. These are fantastic shots of them !

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  26. A portrait of avian perfection - at least in terms of physical attractiveness. We've got some cardinals that nest in the bushes just off our kitchen window. Great fun to watch.

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  27. Oooh she's a real beauty. Probably cold...

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  28. She is beautiful I think she looks like a real lady.
    Greetings

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  29. The female is just as gorgious in her way as the male, and I love her little crest.
    All the best Gordon.

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  30. She is beautiful! First time I see the female cardinal.

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  31. She's beautiful and was worth waiting patiently to photograph her.

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  32. Beautiful shots of the female Cardinal. They seem to be shy around me, I have to hide from them to take any photos. Enjoy your week!

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  33. i love cardinals. hopped over from the bird link up "Wild Bird Wednesday" ( :

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  34. I just love her color. Awesome captures!

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  35. She doesn't need showy colors to be considered extraordinarily beautiful . Love these photos; they are excellent! I saw a wonderful painting of a female cardinal in a gallery which I wish I had bought. Your photos would be MARVELOUS paintings and you really should frame them.

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  36. Both photos are so sweet. Love the little crests on these birds.

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  37. Oh she is a wee beauty EG, what an excellent capture, well worth the wait :)

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  38. Doesn't she look lovely against that snow, very nicely done.

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  39. Super shots. I am glad she felt no threat from you. I wish we had Cardinals out here. MB

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  40. Very patient, EG. Cardinals often pay me the compliment of visiting my West Hartford yard.

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  41. I love cardinals -- mr and mrs! We don't have them in the Pacific Northwest, so I was middle-aged before I ever saw them in real. My mom (who was born in Kentucky) always talked about them and how she missed them after she moved to the Northwest. So they are very special to me.

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  42. Thanks for sharing your wonderful pictures of this gracious lady.

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  43. she's a pretty little thing, I've never seen a cardinal.

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  44. Ooh, I love Cardinals...miss them very much as they don't make their way to B.C. I was pleased to meet your little one...:)

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  45. Such pretty colors!

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