Female Northern Cardinal - Photograph

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  © All Rights Reserved

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I took this photograph of a female Northern Cardinal in my yard this past week.

She was with this male, and they are a different pair than the "bald headed" pair.

I managed to get a nice shot of her as she was taking flight off of the bird feeder.

Male Northern Cardinal - Photograph

  © All Rights Reserved

© All Rights Reserved

(Click on image to enlarge)

I took this photograph of a male Northern Cardinal in my yard this past week.

He was with this female, and they are a different pair than the "bald headed" pair.

American Goldfinch - Photograph

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I took this photograph of a male and female American Goldfinch pair at Sherwood Island State Park in Westport, CT this past week.

I was leaving the park, having given up on getting any good bird photos, when this yellow blur landed nearby, in the Dandelions. I didn't know what type of bird it was, and none of the ground shots showed him, because he was masked by the flowers. As luck would have it, someone walking along caused him to fly into a nearby pine tree, where he was joined by his mate.

Woodpecker - Photograph

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I took this photograph of a Woodpecker in my yard this past week.

American Robin - Photograph

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I took this photograph of an American Robin in my yard this past week.

Bald Female Northern Cardinal - Photograph

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I took these photographs of a "bald" female Northern Cardinal in my yard this past week.

She looked like some kind of weird vulture bird, but she was with a mate, so I knew she had to be a Cardinal.

I did an Internet search, and found that bald Cardinals do happen, but the experts aren't sure why. This site said bald headed birds are usually seen in the Summer and Fall, when they're molting, but it is Spring here for me in the Northern hemisphere. (And I'm in the North East US, where it has been an unseasonably cold Spring.)

But they also said this: "Other cases of baldness may result from feather mites or lice, or some environmental or nutritional factor. But no one knows for sure, and the condition has not been well studied. Fortunately, new head feathers grow in within a few weeks."

Note: The hole in her head, below her eye, is her ear. (I read that on another site, when I was researching this.)

If anyone knows more about this phenomena, or has seen this too, please leave a comment.

My first photo is my entry for the following, in the hopes that people who know more about this will see it and leave comments:

Wild Bird Wednesday
Camera Critters #318
I'd Rather Be Birding

Male Northern Cardinal - Photograph

© All Rights Reserved

(Click on image to enlarge)

I took this photograph of a male Northern Cardinal in my yard this past week.

This bird was with a bald female Northern Cardinal.