northern cardinal

American  

[nawr-thern kahr-dn-l] / ˈnɔr ðərn ˈkɑr dn l /

noun

1. a distinctively crested songbird, Cardinalis cardinalis, the male of which is bright red: the most familiar cardinal in the eastern half of the United States and much of Mexico.

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Etymology

Origin of northern cardinal

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

In the name of deeper discovery, Strassmann combed the scientific literature and profiled 16 household-name species, including the Northern cardinal and the blue jay.

From Seattle Times

The song of the northern cardinal, for example, consistently begins with a few long notes that rise in pitch, followed by quick, short notes with a distinct dip in pitch.

From Scientific American

A bird that appears to be half-female and half-male has been photographed in Pennsylvania by a birder who rushed out with his camera when he heard a friend had spotted the northern cardinal.

From BBC

"I have been searching for the long-thought-extinct ivory-billed woodpecker for almost two decades, and photographing this rare version of one of our most common backyard birds, this gynandromorph northern cardinal, was almost as exciting as I think I would get if I actually found the woodpecker," he said.

From BBC

This possible gynandromorph northern cardinal is not the first to have been spotted in the area.

From BBC