Central Park Birding Report: Pardon my Appearance, I’m Molting

Text and photographs by Boysenberry45

The end of August is molting season in Central Park for Northern Cardinals, when they replace old feathers with new ones.

Birds molt because, over time, their feathers get damaged by UV rays or worn out by flapping and lose their ability to insulate the bird, as well as becoming less aerodynamic. In the case of male Northern Cardinals, which are usually brilliant red, old, dull feathers also make it harder to attract a mate.

All birds molt their feathers, but the frequency and scope can range from a full or complete molt for seasonal breeding plumage to a partial molt to replace damaged large flight feathers. Every bird’s first molt is the loss of the initial nesting, fluffy down feathers.

Northern Cardinals go through one complete molt each year in mid to late August after the end of their breeding season at a time when nutritious berries and insects are readily available to help fuel this labor-intensive process.

Smaller birds like sparrows usually lose all of their feathers at the same time and take a shorter period to replace them, but Cardinals lose their feathers gradually so they can maintain their ability to fly and can take up to eight weeks to replace them. While both male and female Cardinals molt at the same time, the scruffy appearance of the males is much more noticeable.

 It’s rare, but if you are really lucky, you might even find a “bald” Northern Cardinal, missing its characteristic crest.

Once duly garbed in their feathery finery, male cardinals endearingly, during courting, will often share seeds with a potential mate, feeding her beak to beak. 

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