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Northern cardinal (male); photo by ehpien on Flickr (noncommercial use permitted with attributioin / no derivative works).
Official State Bird of Indiana
Indiana designated the northern cardinal (Richmondena Cardinalis Cardinalis) as official state bird in 1933. One of America's favorite backyard birds, cardinals are the state bird in seven states: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia, and West Virginia. All state birds
Cardinals are distinctive in appearance and song - known for their "cheer cheer cheer," "whit-chew whit-chew" and "purty purty purty" whistles.
Male cardinals are a brilliant scarlet red, females a buffy brown with reddish wings - both have a jet -black mask, pronounced crest, and heavy bill. The cardinal sings nearly year-round, and the male aggressively defends his 4-acre territory (male cardinals have been seen attacking small red objects mistaken as other males).
Northern Cardinal Facts
Northern cardinals breed 2-3 times each season.
The female builds the nest and tends the hatchlings for about 10 days while the male brings food. The male then takes over the care of this first brood while the female moves on to a new nest and lays a second clutch of eggs.
