Red-crested Cardinal

Paroaria coronata (Miller, JF, 1776)

≈19 cmLength38 gWeight

The adult has a red head, a red breast patch and a gray back, and raises its short red crest when excited.

Busiest months: October · Most records: Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

Red head extending into a red bib
Short red crest, raised when excited
White belly, breast and undertail-coverts
Gray back, wings and tail

Male, female and young

Juvenile resembles the adult, but the head and bib are dark rufous-orange.

Where and when it's recorded

Red-crested Cardinal has been recorded at 218 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 11 countries and regions.

Records by month Southern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Reserva Ecológica Costanera SurArgentina9,336 records
Gran Asunción – Parque Guasu MetropolitanoParaguay1,097 records
Lago de RegatasArgentina1,084 records

More places

Parque Ecológico do TietêBrazil1,036 records
PN Iberá – Portal Laguna IberáArgentina1,024 records
Reserva Ecológica Ciudad Universitaria - Costanera NorteArgentina1,022 records
Paso Centurión – ÁreaUruguay991 records
Poconé – Pousada PiuvalBrazil763 records
CeibasArgentina704 records
Ceibas – TerraplénArgentina695 records

Countries and regions with the most records

Argentina Uruguay Brazil Paraguay Bolivia Ecuador Peru China

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The red-crested cardinal (Paroaria coronata) is a passerine bird in the tanager family Thraupidae. Notwithstanding its similar name, this bird is not closely related to the true cardinal family Cardinalidae. It is sometimes known as the Brazilian cardinal.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Red-crested Cardinal?

The Red-crested Cardinal is about ≈19 cm long and weighs around 38 g.

Where does the Red-crested Cardinal live?

Its breeding range: South America: Bolivia and southwestern Brazil to central Argentina, Uruguay and southern Brazil. It is most often recorded in Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil.