PERCHING BIRDS 
593. Cardinal. Cardinalis cardinalis cardinalis. 
Range. — Eastern United States, north to New York and Illinois, west to the 
Plains and Texas. Resident in most of its range. 
These beautiful fiery red and crested songsters are one of- the most attractive 
of our birds, and in their range, nest about habitations as 
freely as among the thickets and scrubby brush of wood 
or hillside. Their nests are rarely placed higher than ten 
feet from the ground in bushes, branches, vines, brush 
piles or trees; they are loosely made of twigs, coarse 
grasses and weeds, shreds of bark, leaves, etc., and lined 
with fine grass or hair. They frequently lay two or three 
sets of eggs a season, the first being completed usually 
early in May; three or four, and sometimes five, white or 
pale bluish white eggs are laid; they are very varied in markings but usually 
profusely spotted, more heavily at the large end, with reddish brown and 
lavender. Size 1.00 x.70. 
593a. Arizona Cardinal. Cardinalis cardinalis superbus. 
Range. — Northwestern Mexico and southern Arizona. 
A larger and more rosy form of the Cardinal. Its eggs cannot be dis- 
tinguished from those of the eastern Redbird. 
593b. San Lucas Cardinal. Cardinalis cardinalis igneus. 
Range. — Southern Lower California. 
Like the last but smaller and with less black on the forehead; eggs the same. 
