Monday, January 9, 2012

And now, a white-headed cardinal!

My recent posts on Northern Cardinals with aberrant coloration seemed to spark a fair bit of interest, and I've received many notes about other strange-looking cardinals. Here's yet another, and it was so odd in appearance that I begged permission to use the photos here.

Photo courtesy of Jane Simcox

Jane Simcox has had this (for simplicity's sake we'll call it a partial albino) female Northern Cardinal at her Akron-area feeders for a while now, and it's a charmer.

Photo courtesy of Jane Simcox

The bird looks as if it flew headlong into a snow bank! A very strange and distinctive animal, to be sure. I would love to cross it with Mr. Yellowbird in THIS POST. I'm sure the offspring would be remarkable.

Big thanks to Jane for sharing her elegant cardinal.

26 comments:

Elaine said...

Looks like the Red-crested Cardinal in Hawaii.

Wiseoldgranny said...

We have a girl who looks just like this who appeared this week in our small town north of Pittsburgh. Looks like she plans to stick around too!

Unknown said...

We have had one of these birds at our feeders since early 2012 in Indianapolis IN



RCfere

Anonymous said...

I have One in Vienna also

Linda S. said...

I've been researching this bird for over an hour when my daughter ran across this site. I have one hanging around our feeder with the other cardinals, in Troup, Tx.

JSirotti Vicksburg, MI said...

My parents have one of these unusual cardinals at their home in Boltonville, WI. I was able to see it over the holidays-lovely!

Anonymous said...

We have several variations in Huntingtown, Maryland. last year we had a female with white cheeks. We now see two different females with full white heads.We assume that they are descendants.3

Miss Tia said...

I know this blog entry is a few years old; but I'm in Akron Ohio and just had a white headed female cardinal show up today at my feeders!! Wonder if it's the same!

Anonymous said...

Just saw one here in Oklahoma a few times over the last few weeks.

Anonymous said...

Here in Mustang , Oklahoma I usually have a dozen or so male cardinals and almost as many female cardinals(they are harder to count fast) every year for last 5 years I have been feeding the birds. Today, 12-8-2016 , was first time to see a female cardinal with a white head. While looking online to try to verify that is what she really was, I came across this site and decided to post the information as to location . Hope she decides to stay like all the other cardinals that seem to be regulars at my feeder.

C Howard said...

I have been seeing a white-headed female cardinal visiting my feeder for the past three days here in Azle, Texas.

Anonymous said...

I love all of my cardinals - all year long. Just spotted this white faced lady and had to look her up! Wow! I wish that I had gotten a picture. With love from Forestburg, TX (red river county)

Anonymous said...

I just took a picure of one a few minutes ago here in Middle Tennessee.
I wonder if she's related to the all-albino one from last year.

These white headed ones look like cockatiels! I thought at first it's what it was, but logic crept in...brrrrrrr...

Anonymous said...

My husband just took a picture of one of these
Beauties in Aledo. TX. We’ve been seeing him
with the other Cardinals this week. So pretty.

Unknown said...

FINALLY! We live in central pa and love feeding our birds. Even have a few with names. This white headed, very unusual looking, cardinal sized bird arrived in our yard just before Christmas. Took many pictures but no one knew what it was. She just paid us a visit this afternoon and I thought how much she resembled a cardinal. Good old google brought me to this blog. Woo Hoo! She’s a white headed cardinal. Absolutely beautiful.

January 30, 2018

Anonymous said...

My wife just sent me a picture she took of oneby our feeder in northwest Florida. We love seeing the different birds that show up and this is true Luca different one, for sure!

Anonymous said...

We have had the white headed female cardinal(leucism is the explaination for her condition), coming to our feeders for a couple of weeks. We live in Des Moines, Iowa. She and her mate have a nest in the neighbors evergreen tree.

Anonymous said...

I have one of these precious birds too! Didn’t know what she was. Shelbyville KY December 13, 2018

Anonymous said...

Anonymous I have seen one of these birds 2018-2019 been feeding birds for 20 years never seen one till now Knifley KY

Cindy said...

We have a female cardinal with a white head at our feeder in Cincinnati Ohio. Beautiful. She’s been around all day. Saw one last year too!! Hope this one stays around a while

Cindy said...

Since I left the last comment on the white headed cardinal she has visited often. Such a pleasure to see her. She doesn’t feed on the feeder rarer gets seeds from the ground.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for clearing this up. We only saw ours in flight and feared that it was a tropical bird that might not survive the winter. Saw him sitting still on a fence. Came in and googled white head cardinal and mystery solved. Ours is a male, bright red crest, snow white head. Thanks from Palestine Texas!

Cindy Todd said...

Seen this type of bird last night sitting on my bird feeder. It was beautiful!

DustyDave said...

I do have a white headed female cardinal that’s been coming to my feeder in Owings Mills Maryland

Anonymous said...

So glad for your webpage, Jim, and the posting of Jane's terrific picture of the bird my Thai wife has seen and photographed this winter in Severn, Maryland (apparently the third in MD reported on your site).

Angelina said...

So helpful. We’re in Ohio and just saw one at our feeder. (We hope she sticks around.) Without this site, the search would have gone on a very long time.