It was in a nature reserve adjacent to the Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington, Ontario, that I saw my first Cardinal. A bird that might be common for many of you, but for me, it was my first time. And what a delight!
Early morning in September, a perfect day for birding. Soft sun rays illuminating the boardwalk, mesmerizing:
Saw my first Northern Cardinal in some low bushes. Here’s my first photo. The curiosity is mutual:
And after that, I was looking for reds all the way and had taken many more pictures of the bird with its habitat mainly in the southeastern part of North America. There were other birds and fields of goldenrods but it was red that I sought. I wasn’t disappointed. Had the chance of meeting a few other Cardinals, including the female and the juvenile:
Common, ordinary? Purely relative.
The sun emerged brighter, this time, shedding light to illuminate the mind’s eye, storing fond memories, an indelible reminder for me to return in the future.
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Ripple Effects 
How wonderful! I do love the cardinals. As a matter of fact, they were so common when I was growing up in Iowa that my high school teams’ mascot was the cardinal. Somewhere, I have a photo of high-school-age me building a snow cardinal in our front yard. If I can dig it up, I’ll email it to you.
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Looking forward to your cardinal! 😉
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I love cardinals! I am lucky enough to have a pair nesting nearby every year. This year the garden was frequently visited by a fledging male who would come sit on my deck rail and chirp chirp chirp. Then he’d go flitting around the garden from tree to bush to fence to tree, visit the water bowl, and return to the deck rail. He’s all grown up and flown away now, but it was magical having him around.
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Wonderful that you have them right in your garden! I had to travel over a thousand miles to see them. 😉
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Surprised to learn that this is your first encounter with the cardinal. Reading your post made me realise how I’ve taken my constant encounter with this bird for granted, as the cardinal is the State bird of Ohio, my home state for the past 40 years.
Lovely shots, especially the 2 of the boardwalk! Feels as if I’m walking on it with you:))
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Cardinals are always good for some amazing photos. These are fantastic!
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Thanks Deb. A special encounter for me, for sure, as we don’t have them in Western Canada.
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Oh, I’m so glad you got to see one of my favorite birds! Aren’t they pretty? I wish you could have seen them in the snow — but any time of year they shine!
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Finally! But maybe not breeding season, they’re not as full or as red as I’d seen them in birding websites or online pictures.
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Sweet birds! We don’t have them here or if we do I’ve never seen one. They are a special treat for sure.
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According to the distribution map they are mostly in eastern and southern US.
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I “met” cardinals when I lived in Northern Virginia in the 80s. We have a lot of impressive birds in Australia but even so Northern America can lay claim
to a few, and the cardinal is one of those. A glorious bird.
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