Text and Photos by Ames Bowman
With its distinct red feathers, or plumage, its deep orange beak, and a crest that resembles a well-groomed mohawk, the presence of the Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) in Northern Virginia is unmistakable. The Northern Cardinal is Virginia’s state bird. I tagged along with part-time Arlington County Park Naturalist Yolanda Villacampa on Sunday, March 24, 2019 at Long Branch Nature Center to learn more about this bird as a part of her Virginia State Symbols program series.
At the beginning of the program, Yolanda shared some interesting facts about the Northern Cardinal:
- While the Northern Cardinal is the state bird of Virginia, it is also the state bird of six other states: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, and West Virginia.
- When you see a bright-red cardinal with a black patch at the base of the beak (or bill), you’re looking at an adult male Northern Cardinal.
- Adult female Northern Cardinals are tan but share characteristics of the male: the pronounced crest, the short but big orange bill, and some red feathers.
- Juvenile Northern Cardinals (both male and female) look like the females but with a grey beak.
- The bird’s diet is primarily seeds and berries, but it is also known to snack on insects.
- The bird has several calls, they are easy to identify when the male and female call back in forth in the same song.
Before heading out on the trail from Long Branch Nature Center to Glencarlyn Park, we listened intently to a recording of the bird’s several calls so that we could identify the cardinal by ear on the trail. Click here to listen to calls and responses of male and female Northern Cardinals. (Credit: Larry Arbanas/Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology (ML466840).)
We also learned how to use a field guide to identify other birds that we were likely to encounter on the trail and received a quick tutorial on how to focus our binoculars and, quietly, alert others in the group to the location of a bird.
During our walk, we heard several Northern Cardinal duets and observed one male Northern Cardinal. We also saw and identified three White-breasted Nuthatches (Sitta carolinensis) and two Downy Woodpeckers (Dryobates pubescens). One White-breasted Nuthatch was defending its territory on a tree from a nearby squirrel by extending its wings and swaying back and forth.
Learn more about Yolanda Villacampa, a part-time Arlington County Park Naturalist and ARMN member, in the 2018 blog post, ARMN: Getting to Know Yolanda Villacampa.
Be a Birder!
You, too, can watch the Northern Cardinal and other birds! While early March till early May are ideal times to observe courtship rituals and migratory species that pass through the region before the onset of summer, Northern Virginia is home to many native birds that you can see year-round! Learn about the courtship ritual of the male American Woodcock in a companion ARMN blog piece, “Sky Dancer: The American Woodcock.”
Whether you’re a beginner birder with a basic interest or a pro, consider joining either of the weekly bird walks at the nearby parks or with groups listed below. Make sure to check ahead before you venture out for information on where to meet, updates, weather-related cancellations, and other birding events. Happy birding!
| Location | Date & Time | Website |
| Huntley Meadows Park | Every Monday morning, 7 or 8 a.m. | Friends of Huntley Meadows Park |
| Dyke Marsh Wildlife Preserve | Every Sunday, beginning at 8:00 AM | Friends of Dyke Marsh |
| Audubon Society of Northern Virginia | Various dates and times, parks throughout Northern Virginia | Audubon Society of Northern Virginia – Bird Walks and Field Trips |