Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)

OTHER NAMES: Common Cardinal, Red Cardinal, Cardinal
Latin Etymology: Cardinalis (cardinal) cardinalis (cardinal)

Adult male Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) at St Charles, Illinois, USA - July 2024

Featured Subspecies: Cardinalis cardinalis cardinalis
Weight: 44g  /  Length: 21-23cm  /  Wingspan: 25-31cm
NO UK STATUS / IUCN Red List: Least Concern

One of the most iconic birds of North America, the gloriously vermillion male Northern Cardinal is always going to stand out at the bird table. The female is a little more subdued, with a predominantly brown plumage, but still with flashes of red throughout. Named for their colour, as an allusion to the bright red robes of Catholic cardinals.

Related Species:
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Cardinalidae
Genus: Cardinalis
SUBSPECIES: C. c. cardinalis, C. c. affinis, C. c. canicaudus, C. c. carneus, C. c. clintoni, C. c. coccineus, C. c. flammiger, C. c. floridanus, C. c. igneus, C. c. littoralis, C. c. magnirostris, C. c. mariae, C. c. phillipsi, C. c. saturatus, C. c. seftoni, C. c. sinaloensis, C. c. superbus, C. c. townsendi, C. c. yucatanicus

 - Sighting Locations -

UNITED STATES - Found in the East and South of the US
 - CHICAGO TO ALASKA ROADTRIP 2024: Seen several times in St Charles

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto

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Cardinal (Argynnis pandora)

OTHER NAMES: N/A

Latin Etymology: Argynnis (epithet of Aphrodite) pandora (after the mythological figure)

Adult Cardinal (subspecies A. p. pandora) at Patones, Spain - April 2015

Featured Subspecies: Argynnis pandora pandora
Length: ?  /  Wingspan: 64-80mm
NO UK STATUS / IUCN Red List: Least Concern 

The Cardinal is a large fritillary found around the Mediterranean and Central Asia, and in Europe at least one of the larger butterfly species within its range.  It's larvae feeds on viola species, and it seemed to be reasonably numerous in the hilly region near Madrid we saw it in, though it rarely stopped long enough to take photos of it.

Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Nymphalidae
Genus: Argynnis
Subspecies: A. p. chrysobarylla, A. p. cyrenea, A. p. pasargades, A. p. wedekindi, A. p. pandora

- Sighting Locations -

SPAIN - Spanish - Pandora

Locally common resident.

 - MADRID 2015 TRIP: Several seen at Patones

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto .