Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) Gail McPeek
Oakwoods Metropark, Monroe Co., MI 11/3/2008 © Jerry Jourdan This species sponsored in memory of Herb Harrington. (Click to view a comparison of Atlas I to II)
Few birds add such beauty to our provided by bird feeders (Halkin and Linville 1999). neighborhoods as the Northern Cardinal. A brilliant red male singing from a green treetop Distribution against a sky-blue backdrop is a picture perfect Michigan’s avian checklists chronicle the moment. This year-round resident also adds a dramatic change in status and distribution for cheery splash of red during Michigan’s long, the cardinal. In just 150 years, this species went snowy winters. The cardinal ranks among our from accidental visitor (Gibbs 1879); to rare and most popular birds. Its image adorns mail mainly confined to the southern LP (Barrows boxes, home décor, clothing and sports apparel, 1912); to common in southern Michigan and and it is the official bird of seven states. The spreading northwards (Wood 1951); to the cardinal eats a variety of insects, fruits and present distribution mapped by both Atlases. seeds. Its conical bill is a powerful seed Now the Northern Cardinal is common across crusher, a skill easily observed at feeders with much of the LP, and is rare but well established sunflower seeds. During fall molt, both males in parts of the UP. and females consume fruits and insects high in carotenoid pigments. These are essential for MBBA II results clearly show that the cardinal maintaining plumage color, even the tints of red continued its northward advance during the last on the otherwise grayish-tan female. 25 years. Comparing the two atlases, townships
with breeding evidence increased from 340 to Today, the Northern Cardinal can be found 416 in the NLP, and from 19 to 68 in the UP. throughout most of the eastern and central The map shows only small sections in the NLP United States, from central Minnesota, southern not yet occupied by this songbird, areas having Canada and Maine, south across Texas, Arizona more contiguous forest and fewer people. In the and into portions of Mexico and Central UP, cardinals are concentrated along the America. This is an expanded range compared Wisconsin border, with other records scattered to historic accounts, and is attributed to human about in the vicinity of human habitation. influence on the landscape, the warming climate, and enhanced winter food supply
© 2010 Kalamazoo Nature Center Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) Gail McPeek
The cardinal is a bird of second-growth habitats, of cardinals counted totaled 7,140 in the SLP, including shrubby fields, forest and marsh 714 in the NLP, and 51 in the UP (Palmgren edges, and the multitude of hedgerows and 2007). plantings found in towns, suburbs, parks and other human landscapes. A good breeding The BBS is our best source for relative territory includes a few large trees or other abundance of breeding birds. Data for the conspicuous song perches, and dense woody period of 1966-2007 identified highest densities vegetation for nesting. (20+ cardinals per route) in the counties of Macomb, Oakland, Livingston, and Washtenaw Breeding Biology in the southeast plus all of the counties in the Color difference of the sexes makes it easy to southwest from Ionia, Eaton, and Calhoun to recognize a breeding pair. Territorial singing Berrien (Sauer et al. 2008). It is also fairly begins in early spring, and not just by the male. abundant in the Thumb, with several routes The female cardinal is an accomplished singer averaging 15-20 cardinals. Counties along the and song exchanges with her mate are important SLP-NLP transition line tend to average for coordinating behavior during the breeding between 5-10 cardinals per route. Farther north season (Stokes and Stokes 1983, Kroodsma in the LP, numbers are considerably lower (1-2 2005). The female also sings from the nest, a per route) with the exception of the Traverse signal to the male for food delivery (Halkin City area, where one route has an average of 1997). In fact, listening for such song and eight cardinals. This concentration was evident observing a male enter and leave the same spot, in MBBA I and attributed to the abundance of can help you locate the nest. Commonly chosen orchard and residential habitats in the area nest sites include hawthorn, honeysuckle, (Durst 1991). multiflora rose, and dense conifers. Since 1966, BBS data for the state show a Recorded egg dates for Michigan range from 10 steady and significant increase of 1.4% per year April to 9 September (Kalamazoo Nature Center (Sauer et al. 2008). After being reported on an 2004). An early start to breeding allows for two average of 30 routes during the 1966-79 period, or three broods per season. Clutch size is this species showed a large increase, and was usually three eggs, which hatch in about 12 observed on an average of 60 routes in 1980- days. Nestlings are fed a nourishing diet of 2007. This trend has manifested itself across insects and fledge in about 10 days. Fledglings the northern part of its range. Our neighbors to resemble the female, but with a tiny crest and the west and east in Wisconsin (Temple 2006) stubby tail. As juveniles, a dark-colored beak and Ontario (McLaren 2007), have also distinguishes them from adult females. documented continued increases during the 1990s. Likewise, McGowan (2008) reported an Abundance and Population Trends increase in New York State since the first atlas (Click to view trends from the BBS) 20 years ago. Within the state, Northern Cardinals are most abundant in the SLP. The second-growth During the development of its Landbird habitats and climate of this region are more Population Conservation Plan, PIF (2004) suited to this species. The large human estimated Michigan’s cardinal population at population with its plantings and bird feeders 1,100,000. This suggests this species now has a are an added bonus. Atlas, Breeding Bird population size similar to the Ovenbird and Survey, Christmas Bird Count (CBC) and other American Goldfinch. While these are rough databases all show this pattern of abundance. approximations, they clearly reveal just how On the 2006-07 CBC, for example, the number
© 2010 Kalamazoo Nature Center Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) Gail McPeek common the Northern Cardinal has become in D. Lepage, and A.R. Couturier (eds.). 2007. the state. Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Ontario, 2001-2005. Bird Studies Canada, Conservation Needs Environment Canada, Ontario Field The cardinal is currently thriving in Michigan. Ornithologists, Ontario Ministry of Natural It is not a conservation concern, but rather a bird Resources, and Ontario Nature. Toronto, that seems well-adapted to human environs. Ontario. The correlation between its northern range Palmgren, G.R. 2007. Summary of the 2006- expansion and warming climate is intriguing 2007 Michigan CBC. Michigan Birds and and worthy of further study. Natural History 14(3): 110-131. Sauer, J.R., J.E. Hines, and J. Fallon. 2008. The Literature Cited North American Breeding Birds Survey, results and analyis 1966-2007. Version Barrows, W.B. 1912. Michigan Bird Life. 5.15.2008. USGS Patuxent Wildlife Special Bulletin. Michigan Agricultural Research Center. Laurel, MD. College. Lansing, MI. Stokes, D.W., and L.Q. Stokes. 1983. A Guide Durst, B. 1991. Northern Cardinal. In Brewer, to Bird Behavior (vol. II). Little, Brown and R., G.A. McPeek, and R.J. Adams Jr. (eds.). Co., Boston. 1991. The Atlas of Breeding Birds of Temple, S.A. 2006. Northern Cardinal. In Michigan. Michigan State University Press. Cutright, N.J., B.R. Harriman, and R.W. East Lansing, MI. Howe. 2006. Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Gibbs, M. 1879. Annotated list of the birds of Wisconsin. Wisconsin Society for Michigan. Bulletin of the US Geological Ornithology. Waukesha, WI. and Geographical Survey of the Territories Wood, N.A. 1951. The Birds of Michigan. MP 5:481-497. 75. University of Michigan Museum of Halkin, S.L. 1997. Nest-vicinity song Zoology. Ann Arbor, MI. exchanges may coordinate biparental care of Northern Cardinals. Animal Behavior Suggested Citation 54:189-198. Halkin, S.L., and S.U. Linville. 1999. Northern McPeek, G. 2010. Northern Cardinal Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis). In The (Cardinalis cardinalis) In Chartier, A.T., J.J. Birds of North America, No. 440 (A. Poole Baldy, and J.M. Brenneman (eds.). 2010. and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North The Second Michigan Breeding Bird Atlas. America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA. Kalamazoo Nature Center. Kalamazoo, MI. Kalamazoo Nature Center. 2004. Michigan Accessed online at:
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