My "Odd" Cardinal

Photo Description
This bird appeared at my feeder last year and I never could get a good look at it. It was bright red, almost orange, it 'glowed', it was so beautiful. It looked like a cardinal, but something was just not right. There were no black markings around the face and it was not the right color red. I looked at all my bird books trying to figure out what kind of bird it was. I though maybe a scarlet tanger, but no that wasn't it. I thought maybe an immature cardinal, but the colors didn't fit that pattern either. The bird came almost daily to feed. One day it showed up with a female cardinal. After some researching I decided it was an 'aberrant colored' male cardinal. I watched for him everyday. He would come, sometimes with his mate and sometimes alone. I noticed that the other birds picked on him. He would try to feed and they would dive at him and run him away. I loved seeing the bird come and feed, he is so pretty with his bright red-orange feathers. I even named him "Abe" since he was 'aberrant'. This year when all the spring birds started coming around I watched for "Abe". I wasn't sure if he would be back this year or not. Then one afternoon in April I saw him in the grass under the feeders pecking away for seeds. I was so glad to see him. He even brought his mate by one morning for breakfast. I saw him feeding her. How sweet! I'm not sure how long birds live, but I hope Abe continues to come by each year. He is one of a kind!

Photo Location
Lake Norman, Denver NC