I walk by a home with a pretty red metal cardinal as a welcome sign. I do think cardinals are attractive birds — at least the males are. The red color is so vivid and especially striking in snow. My only other connection to the charming cardinals is that my mother was a St. Louis Cardinals baseball fan. Maybe it was the eye-catching red bird that attracted her plus the fact that St. Louis is not too far from Urbana, Illinois where she lived. My father, on the other hand, always loved the Chicago Cubs baseball team. My parents had a mock rivalry when the teams played each other. Regardless of which baseball team you root for, there is no denying that cardinals are extraordinary birds. Let’s find out more about them.
According to Wikipedia cardinals, in the family Cardinalidae, are passerine birds found in North and South America. They are also known as cardinal-grosbeaks and cardinal-buntings. Sometimes known as perching birds or songbirds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by the arrangement of their toes — three pointing forward and one back — which facilitates perching.
DNA analysis of the genera Piranga — which includes the scarlet tanager, summer tanager and western tanager — Chlorothraupis and Habia showed their closer relationship to the cardinal family. They have been reassigned to that family by the American Ornithological Society.
Genus Periporphyrus
The red-and-black grosbeak (Periporphyrus erythromelas) is a species of grosbeak in the family Cardinalidae. It is the only species in the genus Periporphyrus. It is found in Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname and Venezuela. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest.
Genus Caryothraustes
The yellow-green grosbeak (Caryothraustes canadensis) is a species of grosbeak in the family Cardinalidae.
In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the yellow-green grosbeak in his “Ornithologie” based on a specimen collected in Cayenne in French Guiana. He used the French name Le Gros-bec de Cayenne and the Latin name Coccothrauste Cayanensis. Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognized by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his “Systema Naturae” for the twelfth edition, he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. One of these was the yellow-green grosbeak. Linnaeus included a terse description, used the binomial name Loxia canadensis and cited Brisson's work. Linnaeus mistakenly claimed that the species occurred in Canada rather than Cayenne and introduced the specific name canadensis for Canada where the bird does not occur. This species is now placed in the genus Caryothraustes that was introduced by the German naturalist Ludwig Reichenbach in 1850. The name Caryothraustes combines the Ancient Greek words kauron "nut" and thraustes "breaker." The genus contains two species: yellow-green grosbeak and black-faced grosbeak.
It is found in Brazil, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Panama, Suriname and Venezuela. Its natural habitats ae subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and heavily degraded former forest.
The black-faced grosbeak forages in shrubs or trees for beetles, caterpillars and other insects, and also eats fruit such as those of gumbo-limbo (Bursera simaruba), seeds and nectar taken from flowers or epiphyte bracts. It forms noisy flocks of up to 20 birds, and is often in mixed-species feeding flocks with honey creepers and other tanagers as well as New World warblers. It generally tries to avoid human-altered habitat though it can be sometimes found in heavily degraded former subtropical or tropical forests.
This species breeds in the Caribbean lowlands and foothills from sea level to about 1000 m altitude, and is found in the canopy and middle levels of dense wet forests, tall second growth and semi-open habitats such as woodland edge and clearings. The nest is a bowl constructed from bromeliad leaves and other epiphytes 3–6 m high in a small tree or palm. The female lays three brown-spotted, grey-white eggs between April and June.
Genus Rhodothraupsis
The crimson-collared grosbeak (Rhodothraupis celaeno) is a medium-size seed- and leaf-eating bird in the same family as the northern cardinal, Cardinalidae.
The crimson-collared grosbeak is primarily found in northeastern Mexico from central Nuevo León and central Tamaulipas south to northern Veracruz; however, it occasionally strays into the Rio Grande Valley of southern Texas, mostly in winter.
This bird is 8.0-9.25 inches in length. It probably weighs about 2.1 ounces, but it is unknown. Mature males have black plumage with a dull red or pinkish red "collar" on the nape, shoulders and belly much like the crimson-collared tanager; the belly is mottled with black. Mature females have a black head and breast like males but greenish upperparts and yellowish underparts. Young birds are similar to females but have less black. The beak is black, big and stubby, with the upper mandible jutting roughly perpendicular to the forehead.
The song is a warble, often slurred upward at the end. Calls are penetrating whistles starting with an "s" sound, slurred downward or one upward followed by one downward.
The crimson-collared grosbeak inhabits humid or semi-arid forest and second growth, from low to high levels, sometimes skulking on the ground. It occurs singly, in pairs, or in mixed-species flocks.
The nest is a bulky cup made of grass and twigs and placed in a bush. The female lays two or three pale blue-grey eggs with brown markings.
Genus Cardialis
Cardinalis is a genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae. There are three species: northern cardinal, pyrrhuloxia or desert cardinal and vermillion cardinal.
The northern cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) is a bird in the genus Cardinalis; it is also known colloquially as the redbird, common cardinal, red cardinal or just cardinal — which was its name prior to 1985. It can be found in southeastern Canada, through the eastern United States from Maine to Minnesota to Texas, and south through Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala. It is also an introduced species in a few locations such as Bermuda and Hawaii. Its habitat includes woodlands, gardens, shrublands and wetlands.
The northern cardinal is a mid-sized songbird with a body length of 8.3–9.1 inches. It has a distinctive crest on the head and a mask on the face which is black in the male and gray in the female. The male is a vibrant red, while the female is a reddish olive color. The northern cardinal is mainly granivorous, but also feeds on insects and fruit. The male behaves territorially, marking out his territory with song. During courtship, the male feeds seed to the female beak-to-beak. A clutch of three to four eggs is laid, and two to four clutches are produced each year. It was once prized as a pet, but its sale as a cage bird was banned in the United States by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918.
The pyrrhuloxia or desert cardinal (Cardinalis sinuatus) is a medium-sized North American songbird found in the American southwest and northern Mexico. This distinctive species with a short, stout bill and red crest and wings, and closely resembles the Northern cardinal and the Vermillion cardinal which are in the same genus.
The vermilion cardinal (Cardinalis phoeniceus) is a species in the cardinal family (Cardinalidae). It is found in Colombia and Venezuela. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.
Genus Piranga
Piranga is a genus of birds long placed in the tanager family, but now considered members of the cardinal family, Cardinalidae. The genus name Piranga is from the Tupi word tijepiranga, the name for an unknown small bird.
Similar in shape and habits to the true tanagers, their coloration betrays their actual relationships. They are essentially red, orange, or yellow all over, except the tail and wings, and in some species also the back. Such extensive lipochrome coloration — except on the belly — is very rare in true tanagers but is widespread among the Cardinalidae.
There are nine species: rose-throated tanager, Hepatic tanager, Scarlet tanager, Summer tanager, Western tanager, flame-colored tanager, white-winged tanager, red-headed tanager and red-hooded tanager.
The rose-throated tanager (Piranga roseogularis) is a medium-sized American songbird. It is endemic to the Yucatán Peninsula, and is found in Belize, Guatemala and Mexico. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and heavily degraded former forest. The breeding region is in Middle America and the breeding subregion is from Mexico to Guatemala.
The hepatic tanager (Piranga flava) is a medium-sized American songbird. The species's plumage and vocalizations are similar to other members of the cardinal family.
The scarlet tanager (Piranga olivacea) is a medium-sized American songbird. The species' plumage and vocalizations are similar to other members of the cardinal family, although the Piranga species lacks the thick conical bill — well-suited to seed- and insect-eating — that many cardinals possess.
The summer tanager (Piranga rubra) is a medium-sized American songbird. The species's plumage and vocalizations are similar to other members of the cardinal family.
The western tanager (Piranga ludoviciana) is a medium-sized American songbird. The species's plumage and vocalizations are similar to other members of the cardinal family.
The flame-colored tanager (Piranga bidentata), formerly known as the stripe-backed tanager, is a medium-sized American songbird. The species's plumage and vocalizations are similar to other members of the cardinal family.
A tropical passerine bird, the flame-colored tanager is found in the mountains of Mexico, and throughout Central America to northern Panama; it is occasionally seen in the United States in the mountains in the southeast corner of Arizona, the southwest of New Mexico and Sonora — the Madrean sky islands of the northern portion of the western Mexican mountain range Sierra Madre Occidental and also the southwest corner of Texas.
The white-winged tanager (Piranga leucoptera) is a medium-sized American songbird. The species' plumage and vocalizations are similar to other members of the cardinal family.
This bird is about 4.8-5.9 inches long and weighs about 0.46-0.51 oz. The male is mostly red, with black wings and white wing bars. The female is dull olive-yellow but retains the black wings and white wing bars. The juvenile is similar to the female.
It is found in Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru and Venezuela. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests on the slopes of mountains.
The red-headed tanager (Piranga erythrocephala) is a medium-sized American songbird. The species's plumage and vocalizations are similar to other members of the cardinal family. It is endemic to Mexico, where its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests on the slopes of mountains.
The red-hooded tanager (Piranga rubriceps), is a medium-sized American songbird. The species' plumage and vocalizations are similar to other members of the cardinal family.
This bird is a medium-sized songbird, at 6.6-7.1 inches in length and weighing 0.99-1.55 ounces. The male is mostly yellowish overall, with a red hood that extends from the head to the breast. The female is similar, but duller overall (minus red head).
It is found in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru where its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests on the slopes of mountains.
Catholic cardinals
A cardinal is a leading bishop and prince of the College of Cardinals in the Catholic Church, appointed by the Pope for life. Cardinals' duties include participating in papal consistories and in conclaves when the Holy See is vacant. Most have additional missions, such as leading a diocese or a dicastery of the Roman Curia, the equivalent of a government of the Holy See. During the sede vacante — the period between a pope's death or resignation and the election of his successor — the day-to-day governance of the Holy See is in the hands of the College of Cardinals. The right to enter the papal conclave of cardinals where the pope is elected is limited to those who have not reached the age of 80 years by the day the vacancy occurs.
In 1059, the right of electing the pope was reserved to the principal clergy of Rome and the bishops of the seven suburbicarian sees. In the 12th century, the practice of appointing ecclesiastics from outside Rome as cardinals began, with each of them assigned a church in Rome as his titular church or linked with one of the suburbicarian dioceses, while still being incardinated in a diocese other than that of Rome.
The term cardinal at one time applied to any priest permanently assigned or incardinated to a church or specifically to the senior priest of an important church, based on the Latin cardo or hinge, meaning "pivotal" as in "principal" or "chief." The term was applied in this sense as early as the 9th century to the priests of the tituli or parishes of the diocese of Rome.
Cardinal numbers
A cardinal number is a number denoting quantity (one, two, three, etc.), as opposed to an ordinal number (first, second, third, etc.).
“The Cardinal” – 1963 movie
“The Cardinal” is a 1963 American drama film produced independently, directed by Otto Preminger and distributed by Colombia Pictures. The screenplay was written by Robert Dozier, based on the novel of the same name in 1950 by Henry Morton Robinson. The music score was written by Jerome Moross.
The film's cast features Tom Tryon, Romy Schneider and John Huston, and it was nominated for six Academy Awards. It marks the final appearance by veteran film star Dorothy Gish as well as the last big-screen performance of Maggie McNamara.
The film was shot on location in Rome, Vienna, Boston and Stamford, Connecticut.
Robinson's novel was based on the life of Cardinal Francis Spellman, who was then Archbishop of New York. The Vatican’s liaison officer for the film was Rev. Dr. Joseph Ratzinger, later to become Pope Benedict XVI. The story touches on various social issues such as interfaith marriage, sex outside marriage, abortion, racial bigotry, the rise of fascism and war.
Cardinal Health Inc.
Cardinal Health Inc. is an American multinational health care services company and the 14th highest revenue generating company in the United States. Its headquarters are based in Dublin, Ohio and Dublin, Ireland. The company specializes in the distribution of pharmaceuticals and medical products, serving more than 100,000 locations. The company also manufactures medical and surgical products, including gloves, surgical apparel and fluid management products. In addition, it operates the largest network of radiopharmacies in the U.S. Cardinal Health provides medical products to over 75 percent of hospitals in the United States.
Arizona Cardinals football team
The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League as a member club of the National Football Conference West division. The team was founded as the Morgan Athletic Club in 1898, and is the oldest continuously run professional football team in the United States. The Cardinals play their home games at State Farm Stadium, which opened in 2006 and is located in the northwestern suburb of Glendale.
The team was established in Chicago in 1898 as an amateur football team and joined the NFL as a charter member on September 17, 1920. Along with the Chicago Bears, the club is one of two NFL charter member franchises still in operation since the league's founding — the Green Bay Packers were an independent team until they joined the NFL a year after its creation in 1921. The club then moved to St. Louis in 1960 and played in that city through 1987, sometimes referred to locally in St. Louis as the "Football Cardinals," the "Gridbirds" or the "Big Red" to avoid confusion with the Major League Baseball team of the same name. Before the 1988 season, the team moved west to Tempe, Arizona, a college suburb east of Phoenix, and played their home games for the next 18 seasons at Sun Devil Stadium on the campus of Arizona State University. In 2006, the club moved to their current home field in Glendale, although the team's executive offices and training facility remain in Tempe.
The franchise has won two NFL championships, both while it was based in Chicago. The first occurred in 1925, but is the subject of controversy, with supporters of the Pottsville Maroons believing that Pottsville should have won the title. Their second title, and the first to be won in a championship game, came in 1947, nearly two decades before the first Super Bowl. They returned to the title game to defend in 1948, but lost the rematch 7–0 in a snowstorm in Philadelphia.
Since winning the championship in 1947, the team suffered many losing seasons, and currently holds the longest active championship drought of North American sports at 72 consecutive seasons. In 2012 the Cardinals became the first NFL franchise to lose 700 games since its inception. The franchise's all-time win-loss record — including regular season and playoff games — at the conclusion of the 2020 season is 573–780–41 (566–771–41 in the regular season, 7–9 in the playoffs). They have been to the playoffs ten times and have won seven playoff games, three of which were victories during their run in the 2008-09 NFL playoffs. During that season, they won their only NFC Championship Game since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger, and reached Super Bowl XLIII, losing 27–23 to the Pittsburgh Steelers. The team has also won five division titles (1974, 1975, 2008, 2009 and 2015) since their 1947–48 NFL championship game appearances. The Cardinals are the only NFL team who have never lost a playoff game at home, with a 5–0 record: the 1947 NFL Championship Game, two postseason victories during the aforementioned 2008–09 NFL playoffs, one during the 2009-10 playoffs and one during the 2015-16 playoffs.
From 1988 to 2012 — except 2005, when they trained in Prescott — the Cardinals conducted their annual summer training camp at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff. The Cardinals moved their training camp to State Farm Stadium — then known as University of Phoenix Stadium — in 2013. The stadium was the site of the 2015 Pro Bowl, unlike in past years, where it was held at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. The stadium also played host to Super Bowls XLII and XLIX, and will host Super Bowl LVII in 2023.
St. Louis Cardinals baseball team
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball as a member club of the National League Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals have played their home games at Busch Stadium. One of the nation's oldest and most successful professional baseball clubs, the Cardinals have won 11 World Series championships, more than any other NL team and second in MLB only to the New York Yankees. The team has won 19 National League pennants, third-most of any team. St. Louis has also won 14 division titles in the East and Central divisions.
In 1881, entrepreneur Chris von der Ahe purchased the Brown Stockings barnstorming club, renamed it the St. Louis Browns, and made it a charter member of the American Association baseball league. The team won four league championships, qualifying them to play in the era's professional baseball championship tournament, a forerunner of the modern World Series. In two of these championships, the Browns met the Chicago White Stockings, launching the enduring Cardinals-Cubs rivalry.
In 1892, the Browns — also called the Perfectos — joined the National League. In 1900, the team was renamed the Cardinals. Two years later, an unrelated St. Louis Browns team joined the American League.
Notable Cardinals achievements include manager/owner Branch Rickey's invention of the farm system, Rogers Hornsby's two batting Triple Crowns, Dizzy Dean's 30-win season in 1934, Stan Musial's 17 MLB and 29 NL records, Bob Gibson's 1.12 earned run average in 1968, Whitey Herzog's Whiteyball, Mark McGwire's single-season home run record in 1998 and the 2011 championship team unprecedented comebacks. The Cardinals have won 105 or more games in four seasons and won 100 or more nine times. Cardinals players have won 20 league MVPs, four batting Triple Crowns and three Cy Young Awards. Baseball Hall of Fame inductees include Lou Brock, Dizzy Dean, Bob Gibson, Whitey Herzog, Rogers Hornsby, Joe Medwick, Stan Musial, Branch Rickey, Red Schoendienst, Ozzie Smith and Buce Sutter.
In 2018, Forbes valued the Cardinals at $1.9 billion, 7th-highest among MLB clubs and far more than the $147 million paid in 1995 by owner William DeWitt Jr.'s investment group. In 2017, the team took in revenue of $319 million on an operating income of $40.0 million. John Mozeliak is the president of baseball operations, Mike Girsch is the general manager and Mike Shildt is the manager. The Cardinals are renowned for their strong fan support: despite being in one of the sport's mid-level markets, they routinely see attendances among the league's highest, and are consistently among the top three in MLB in local television ratings.
Through 2020, the Cardinals' all-time win-loss record is 10,948–10,091 (.520).
Comments