'One in a Million' Yellow Cardinal Spotted in Alabama

al.com ^ | Feb 22, 2018

[nickcarraway]

By Dennis Pillion dpillion@al.com An extremely rare cardinal has birders and biologists flocking to Shelby County, Alabama this week, as images of a yellow cardinal have circulated around social media.

Auburn University biology professor Geoffrey Hill said the cardinal in the photos is an adult male in the same species as the common red cardinal, but carries a genetic mutation that causes what would normally be brilliant red feathers to be bright yellow instead.

Alabaster resident Charlie Stephenson first noticed the unusual bird at her backyard feeder in late January and posted about it on Facebook. She said she's been birding for decades but it took her some time to figure out what she was seeing.

"I thought 'well there's a bird I've never seen before'," Stephenson said. "Then I realized it was a cardinal, and it was a yellow cardinal."

[Albion Wilde]

He identifies as a canary.

[concentric circles]

Winter's Come and Gone - Dailey and Vincent

"Oh little red bird, come to my window sill..."
"Winter's come and gone, a little bird told me so..."

[Jamestown1630]

Birds can be absolutely vicious toward other birds. When it’s not as simple as a hawk stooping on a smaller bird because the hawk is hungry, it must have something to do with different social or ‘moral’ codes among birds.

I remember seeing a bunch of crows ganging up on one little crow; the little one was squealing, sounding like a human baby, while the other crows squawked at it. I figured, at the time, that the little crow had done something unacceptable, or was an intruder into an established crow social system.

I didn’t stick around to see the outcome; but walked away grateful that I wasn’t a bird; and grateful for Jesus.

[Teacher317]

Dr Hfuhruhurr and Ann Uumellmahaye... both spelled exactly like they sound.

[rlmorel]

I'm with you on that! I would rather be near the top of God's food chain, than near the bottom!

One night my brother and I were musing over the extreme predatory functional skill of a large tiger (prompted by the video showing this:)

We were having a beer, just talking, and I said "Can you imagine, having a predator like that with WINGS that could swoop down out of the sky and grab people?"

We both paused for a second, and at the exact same time, because the exact same vision passed through our heads, we looked at each other and said at the same time: "Naaahhh. Never happen."

We both knew that if there were 500 lb tigers with wings, they would have been hunted to extinction by man without any regret (at least regret from non-Leftist radical environmentalists) as soon as they appeared.

[minnesota_bound]

Maybe someone painted it yellow?... for a ‘Lark’

[Jamestown1630]

Well, that video clip is pretty terrifying!

But my gratitude that I am not a bird, and my mention of Jesus, had nothing to do with being ‘at the top of God’s food chain’; but with the fact that we are more than ‘Nature, red in tooth and claw’. We are made in His image - with the ability to rise above mere Nature.

Some of us don’t decide to ‘rise’; but if we choose, we can be more than Animal. We have the ability to conceive of ideals, and to follow, pursue them; try to make them active principles here on Earth.

We have *imagination* and the ability to try and create what we imagine here on the material plane - which is probably the greatest manifestation of the way in which we are ‘made in His image’.

[rlmorel]

All true.

We are men because we CHOOSE to be (via our God-given privilege to be able to choose) and have the ability to conduct ourselves as such...animals do not have that choice.

They are God’s creatures as well, but...they are what they are.

[Jamestown1630]

Unfortunately, the inherent ‘decency’ in animals often makes some humans look bad in comparison.

[rlmorel]

That is 100% true. There are plenty of dogs, cats, or other animals I would preferentially save over certain human beings...