Bird
Pyrrhuloxia
Cardinalis sinuatusAlso known as Desert Cardinal, Texas Cardinal, Gray Cardinal
Pyrrhuloxia navigate the dry scrublands of the American Southwest and Mexico, using their stout, yellow, parrot-like bills to crack open hard seeds and crunch beetles. Males display striking crimson highlights across a predominantly ash-gray body, while females feature subtler pink accents on their crest and wings. During winter, these desert songbirds gather in large foraging flocks before splitting into territorial pairs each spring.
Desert BirdSongbirdSeed Eater
—observations
—countries
—peak records
Least ConcernConservation statusIUCN Red List categoriesLCNTVUENCREWEXLeast ConcernRed List categories, explained →
Diet & preyGrasshoppers, Beetles, Sunflower seeds
Predators
- Cooper's Hawk
- Domestic Cat
- Greater Roadrunner
ThreatsHabitat clearing, urbanization, prolonged drought
HabitatsDesert scrub, mesquite thickets, dry washes, thorn forests
Life span5–8 years
Classification
- OrderPasseriformes
- FamilyCardinalidae
- GenusCardinalis
- SpeciesCardinalis sinuatus
Range data is not available yet.
Interaction riskLow
- Low
- Moderate
- High
- Very high
- Why interaction risk is low
- Safe to observe at a normal distance.
Responsible observation
- Observation: Listen for clear whistling song notes rising from mesquite tops at dawn.
- Feeders: Provide sunflower seeds on low platform feeders near natural brush cover.
- Distance: Remain quiet near nests to avoid alarming incubating adults in spring.
Predator "Cooper's Hawk - immature" by Kaaren Perry is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/. · cc-by
Habitat Partner Don A.W. Carlson / CC BY 2.5 · cc-by
Close Relative Rhododendrites / CC BY-SA 4.0 · cc-by-sa
Close Relative Félix Uribe from Rionegro, Antioquia, Colombia / CC BY-SA 2.0 · cc-by-sa
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