Red-crested Cardinal

Overview

Red-crested Cardinal: Native to South America. Bright red head, crest, face, chin and upperbreast. Upperparts are gray with an incomplete white collar that nearly meets at the back of the neck. Underparts are white. Light gray bill, gray legs and feet. Undulating flight.

Range and Habitat

Red-crested Cardinal: Introduced to the Hawaiian Islands around 1930. Prefers parks, lawns and dry thickets in Hawaii, in its native South America found in subtropical or tropical dry shrubland and degraded forests.

INTERESTING FACTS

Despite its name it is not closely related to birds in the Cardinal family.
It was first released on the Island of Oahu in 1928.
The Red-crested Cardinal is also known as the Brazilian Cardinal.

The Red-crested Cardinal has a fairly large range, estimated globally at 2,400,000 square kilometers. It is primarily found in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Bolivia, and Paraguay, though it has also been introduced to the United States. This bird prefers a dry Subtropical or Tropical Shrubland ecosystem, though it has been known to reside in heavily degraded former forests. The population of the bird has not been determined but is known to be frequent in many of its native areas. The Red-crested Cardinal does not currently meet the criteria for the IUCN Red List and has an evaluation level of Least Concern.