Monday, April 18, 2011

Mates


I knew I'd read that cardinals mated for life (and that may or may not be entirely true--Google it and you'll get a variety of answers!) but watching these two in the rain the other day, I'm prepared to believe it!  It had rained all day, and near evening the female sheltered under the new leaves of the wild honeysuckle near the shed.  Over and over, the male flew to the feeder, selected a sunflower seed, and returned to her branch to feed her. Anthropomorphic I may be, but it was achingly sweet to watch.

Cardinals are non-migratory, and these may the same pair I've seen all winter long, the same ones that built their next and defended it against all comers last summer.

They're also highly territorial.  I once picked up a male cardinal that had collided with a plate glass window downtown; he was stunned and I wasn't sure he'd make it.  After a few hours he perked up, but rather than return him to our small downtown, I took him to our local park thinking it would be safer for him.  NOT!  Every territorial male cardinal in the area gave chase, and the last I saw of him he was winging his way rapidly back to the relative safety of his territory amongst the shops and high-rises!

More about Northern cardinals here.

13 comments:

  1. Beautiful painting and thanks for the info on these lovely birds. I love how you learn about you subjects that you draw and paint. Makes the painting much more alive and interesting.

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  2. Thank you, Sharon! Yes, I like to research a bit more and offer links...a friend of mine who is a wonderful photographer sends out his bird photos with an audio of their songs. That's terrific! I should include that...

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  3. You've captured that tenderness, Kate-- or what we see as tenderness. Whatever it is, it is sweet and adorable.
    annie

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  4. Beautiful and so sweet! I also love the info you include. Just a few days ago I saw a male cardinal at my feeder give a seed to his mate. :)

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  5. You're so lucky to have these birds in the wild. Love the loose style background.

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  6. What a wonderful painting that is-so inspirational and so interesting too. Thanks Kate.

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  7. That's just beautiful. I like the way you've painted it as almost an impression of them so there's less detail and more life. It's just perfect.

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  8. Thanks, all! I had to capture that moment...

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  9. How sweet!!! I'm so glad you were able to capture that moment and share it with us. Thanks also for the information about cardinals, one of my most favorite birds. :)

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  10. Such a beautiful painting Kate! I love how you've kept it very simple and clean.

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  11. Kate you captured it just right. I have seen cardinals do this in my yard. I believe they do mate for life or at least for the year.

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  12. I love the look of this sketch. It is almost like a chinese painting.

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