Summer · June–August · Cardinalis cardinalis

Northern Cardinal in Summer

The northern cardinal in summer is a parent: pairs raise one to two broods a year, clutches of 2–5 eggs hatch in 11–13 days, and the young leave the nest after 7–13 days, fed mostly insects ³.

Behavior is from All About Birds ³, feeding from Project FeederWatch ², and the state numbers from eBird records on this site ¹. The eBird section on this page is computed from the dataset itself: for each of the nine states with occurrence data on this site, it shows the species' share of all eBird records in these months against its share across the year, so you can see where the season actually concentrates the bird ¹.

Male northern cardinal in summer — the season of second broods and insect-fed nestlings — Photo: Rhododendrites, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

What the northern cardinal in summer is doing

Nests are wedged into a fork of small branches in a sapling, shrub or vine tangle, 1–15 feet up and hidden in dense foliage ³. Unusually among North American songbirds, the female sings, often while on the nest, which may tell the male when to bring food ³. Cardinals eat mainly seeds and fruit but feed their nestlings mostly insects — beetles, crickets, katydids, leafhoppers, cicadas, flies, spiders, butterflies and moths ³ — so an unsprayed yard is a cardinal nursery.

The window attacks of spring and early summer, when both sexes fight their reflection while defending territory, stop as hormone levels fall a few weeks into the season ³.

Where to look for cardinals in summer

Cardinals hop through low branches and forage on or near the ground, and sing and preen from a high branch of a shrub, the crest raised when the bird is agitated ³. In summer the pair works its territory alone rather than in the winter flock, and the fledglings follow the adults through hedgerows, forest edges, thickets and ornamental landscaping ³. The eBird cards below show the species holding a steady share of records through June–August in every eastern state on this site, the signature of a resident rather than a migrant ¹.

Feeding cardinals in summer

Black oil sunflower on a hopper or tray still draws the adults ²³, but visits thin while they hunt insects for young. Clean feeders every week or two and more often in heavy use, and discard seed that gets wet in summer storms ². Water matters more than seed in July: a shallow bath, changed daily, brings the whole family ².

eBird records by state: Northern Cardinal, June–August

In June–August the Northern Cardinal makes up the largest share of eBird records in Tennessee (4.4% of all records, against 4.1% across the year). The season raises its share above the annual figure in Texas, Florida. Records are eBird checklists reported 2020–2024 and retrieved through GBIF.

Tennessee4.4% of summer records71,473 records · 4.1% year-round Texas4.2% of summer records177,033 records · 3.3% year-round Florida4.0% of summer records159,508 records · 3.1% year-round Michigan2.7% of summer records131,836 records · 3.1% year-round Rhode Island2.2% of summer records12,225 records · 2.7% year-round Arizona1.3% of summer records54,336 records · 1.2% year-round

More on this bird

Northern Cardinal profile →Feeders for northern cardinals →Plants for northern cardinals →How to attract northern cardinals →Northern Cardinal in spring →Northern Cardinal in fall →Northern Cardinal in winter →

Frequently asked questions

How many broods do cardinals have in summer?

One to two a year, with 2–5 eggs each; young leave the nest after 7–13 days ³.

What do cardinals feed their babies?

Mostly insects — beetles, crickets, katydids, cicadas, caterpillars — even though adults eat mainly seeds and fruit ³.