7th in my series of "crested" birds is (I love its name) the Pyrrhuloxia. They are only found in Southeast of Arizona, South New Mexico, and Southwest Texas, as well as throughout Mexico. Given this limited range in the States, I was lucky to catch one at fairly close range while visiting Tucson, AZ, last winter. If I didn't read about them ahead of time, I might have dismissed it as a female cardinal. The Pyrrhuloxia's bill is more yellow than the cardinal's orange beak, and there is more red on its face and breast. Below are a couple of photos I took on 12/27/09.
6 comments:
What an amazing resemblance to our northern cardinal!
There is one in my backyard here in Austin, Texas. She has a nest with three eggs in it right by my livingroom window.
One was playing around my backyard grill in west Houston. 5/17
I live in Georgia and I saw a Pyrrhuloxia. I that bad?? I saw it in my backyard.
This looks like a Northern Cardinal X Pyrrhuloxia hybrid.
I agree with Michael. This is actually a hybrid between the two. General colour would point to Pyrrhuloxia male in breeding plumage, as does bill shape. Bill colour however is not normal for Pyrrhuloxia, the orange being a typical trait of the Northern Cardinal, as is the black mask on this bird, which is a field mark the Pyrrhuloxia does not possess.
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