Northern Cardinals: Notes of My Observations

It seems our front yard birds are becoming just a little more comfortable while I'm hanging out in their space. They continue to watch me from the nearby trees or across the lawn, but when I'm very still for a little while they'll get closer and closer...until they're within only a few feet from me and my camera.  

I've learned to distinguish some of the cardinals from each other from their individual size and plumage colors.  Charlie has teasingly asked me if I've named them yet...No, not yet.  I'm working on that.  :)))

While observing the Cardinals, it becomes obvious the males dominate the females. Even with a spread of seeds several feet long, the males will dive in on the feeding females and force them to move.  From my observations, it seems the male Cardinals intimidate their females more than they intimidate birds of other species.  On the other hand, the female Cardinals habitually bully the smaller birds around, such as the Goldfinches and Sparrows.   They sometimes remind me of our own human behavior.