Reader David Van Auken, of Baldwinsville, sent in the above photo. He wrote: "It's not a trophy or catch, but very interesting. It's a bald, male cardinal, apparently going through a molting stage." ...

It's the season for those weird baldheaded cardinals again. From a distance, without a close look through binoculars, you might think you're seeing a red bird with a black head — possibly some vagrant ...

Jane Daniels, who lives southwest of Bloomington, sent pictures of a cardinal with no feathers on its head last week. "It looks like a cross between a cardinal and a buzzard!" she said in an e-mail ...

The adult male cardinal is unmistakable with his intense red color, prominent crest and heavy, orange-red bill. The adult female cardinal has a red and grey crest. She is olive-gray above and brownish ...

With its bright red plumage, flamboyant crest and cheery song, the northern cardinal is one of my favorite backyard birds. But the bird currently sitting at my feeder does little to fit that ...