The Northern Cardinal

One of the cheeriest sights during the long, cold winters here in Omaha is the Northern Cardinals that come to visit our feeders.  Cardinals were one of the first birds that came to eat in our yard, and through the years, they have been some of our most constant visitors.  Fortunately, cardinals are easy to attract, and easy to keep around.  Below are some of the tips I have learned through the years to attract cardinals.

Food
Cardinals like both sunflower seed and safflower seed.  If you are interested in attracting many different birds, putting out black oil sunflower and striped sunflower seed will grant you your wish, as well as attracting cardinals.  If you would like to be a little more selective, cardinals are one of the few birds that really enjoy eating safflower seed.  The advantage of this is that grackles and sparrows will avoid your feeder, thereby ensuring less spillage and less waste.  Cardinals also eat many different types of insects, so leaving a section of your yard slightly long, so insects can hide in it, is a great way to lure them in.

Plants
Another appealing thing about cardinals is that they make a lot of nests, and are not especially worried about humans being nearby.  One of their favorites in my yard, which they have nested in on a regular basis, is my lilac trees.  They have also nested in my evergreens and even, earlier this year, my willow.  Having a variety of small trees in your yard can lure more cardinals in.  This year we actually had two different pairs of cardinals nest in our yard!

Male Northern Cardinal (photo by SCB)

Winter Feeding
Another thing I have noticed about cardinals that I have always found interesting is that their appetites seem to change during the winter months.  I say this because if I put out corn for them in the spring through fall months, they mostly ignore it, but if I do so during the winter, I can attract numerous cardinals, both male and female, and during this time of the year, they will eat together without fighting.  It was a visual delight last year to look outside and see them gathered in the snow, and on the bushes near where the corn was, like little Christmas tree ornaments.

Another thing I like about cardinals is that they are fairly friendly birds.  They will sometimes come and chirp at us when they feel that their babies are threatened by other animals, and watch as we chase the predators away.  They will also quickly grow accustomed to your presence.  Years ago, we had a vegetable garden in our backyard, and one particular male cardinal would find each tomato just as it became ripe and take a peck out of it.  Even though my boyfriend would always shout at him in mock anger, calling him "Red Bird," he never seemed fazed in the least, and continued this game even when we were in extremely close proximity to him.

Do you have a tip for attracting cardinals? If so, please leave a comment!