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This cardinal, probably a juvenile male, was a particularly brilliant red, nearly crimson. Interspersed with the very red feathers were bright orange feathers, both on the body, crest, and in the wings. |
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Orange or yellow cardinals are rare but not unknown. Red coloration in birds is derived by pigments and not feather structure, and often has a dietary component.
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Three inner primaries and one outer secondary
of each wing were orangy, and contrasted with the other redder feathers.
All the flight feathers on this bird were fresh, and molt was finished.
Adult birds have complete molts in the fall, where all flight feathers are replaced. If this is an adult, this would indicate some dietary influence resulted in some new feathers being orange, while feathers growing in at other times were red. Juvenile cardinals undergo an incomplete molt in the fall that often involves only some flight feathers. If this is a juvenile bird (as we believe, based on eye color, feather shape, and other plumage characteristics) then the orange feathers are new feathers, and the red feathers should be older, juvenal feathers, which they clearly are not. Again, some factor must have resulted in a mix of orange and redder than usual feathers. |
