Female cardinal

Okay, I knew they didn’t pop as much as their brothers, but I didn’t realise that their colours could be pretty good camouflage!

Another interesting observation: the male and female Cardinal (a mated pair, I assume) never went down to eat these seeds together. One was always up in the safety of the tree.

   31 December 2021
   Ottawa
   ILCE-7M3
   1/350s    f/5.6   300mm   ISO 400
Female cardinal