Birds › Desert scrub › Pyrrhuloxia

Pyrrhuloxia

Cardinalis sinuatus

The desert cousin of the Northern Cardinal: gray, with red on its face and crest and a thick, curved yellow bill.

Where to see it for real: Sunflower seed on a low platform near thorny cover.

Spot it in the game

Lives in the Desert scrub habitat (Sonoran Desert, Arizona and Mexico).

Pyrrhuloxia facts

Family

Cardinals and allies

Length

8.3 in (21 cm)

Weight

1.3 oz (36 g)

Diet

Seeds, insects and cactus fruit.

Range

Deserts of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico.

Nest

A cup of thorny twigs and grass in a mesquite or other thorny shrub.

Song

Clear, sharp whistles, thinner than a cardinal's.

Active

by day

Status

Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: widespread and not at risk.

What the Pyrrhuloxia sounds like

How to attract the Pyrrhuloxia

Feeder foods, favorite first: sunflower seed, millet. Feeders that hold them: tube feeder and platform feeder. Keep a bird bath full, too.

In the game: fill a feeder with sunflower seed and millet and keep the bird bath full. It is an uncommon visitor, so be patient.

More: bird songs and calls, what to feed birds.

More birds of the desert scrub

Greater RoadrunnerDesert scrubCactus WrenDesert scrubGambel's QuailDesert scrubGila WoodpeckerDesert scrubCurve-billed ThrasherDesert scrubVerdinDesert scrub