“The pyruloxia, often mistaken for a faded northern cardinal, features gray and red feathers, a faint crest on its head, and a parrot-like beak.”

While living in the desert, they may appreciate a cool breeze on a hot day.

Read on to learn more about the 10 most fascinating facts about pyruloxia, including how to say its name correctly.

1. Pyrrhuloxias are mistaken for discolored northern cardinals

Pyrrhuloxia ( Cardenalis sinuatus ) is related to the northern cardinal ( Cardenalis cardinalis ). He has an overall physical appearance that makes him look like a faded northern cardinal.

This songbird is gray and red. Males have a long, elegant, faint red crest, and red highlights on the underbelly, wings, tail, and red masks around the beak.

Its yellow beak is shaped very differently than that of a northern cardinal, with a shape more like that of a parrot.

Females are similar, but without the red on the belly or the masks around the beak.

Pyruloxias are found in the hot deserts of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. In contrast, the northern cardinal is found primarily east of the Rocky Mountains.

However, it is possible to see both in desert habitats.

2. His name is difficult to pronounce

The way to say the name of this bird is [pir-uh-lok-see-uh]. However, many people commonly refer to it as the desert cardinal.

The name pyrrhuloxia combines two scientific genus names: Pyrrhula (bullfinches) and Loxia (crossbill finches). The roots of this name date back to Greek references to the shape of the bird’s beak and “flame-colored” feathers.

3. Desert cardinals appreciate a cool breeze

If temperatures are extreme, a pyrrhuloxia might enjoy a cool breeze.

One was observed enjoying the air-conditioned breeze from a deck on a 118°F day. Other birds do this too, such as the wren and the loggerhead shrike.

Pyruloxias are most commonly found in southwestern desert habitats, scrublands, arid canyons, and mesquite groves and thickets. They tolerate dry, open habitats.

Watch this video for a closer look at a pyruloxia perched in a thorn bush on a windy day:

4. They don’t fight with their northern cardinal relatives

In areas where pyruloxia and northern cardinals overlap territories, they do not fit together. Each member of each species only fights against its own species.

The pyruloxias fight for territorial rights. Males also stop at territorial boundaries and sing.

5. Pyrrhuloxias are seasonally ugly and vocal

Pyrrhuloxias are particularly fierce and vocal towards each other during breeding seasons.

However, when it is winter they gather in large flocks to search for food.

6. They feed in winter flocks

When it is not breeding season, pyruloxias have been found to feed together during the winter. These flocks can have up to 1,000 members.

They feed on the ground, in bushes and flow in trees in search of food such as insects and berries.

7. Desert cardinals have a varied diet

Pyruloxias are omnivores and eat mainly insects, seeds and berries.

They are especially fond of sunflower seeds and will feed on platform feeders in the backyard or on seeds dropped to the ground. They also eat seeds from weeds, grasses and mesquites.

They consume insects such as caterpillars, grasshoppers, beetles and other arthropods. They will help cotton crops thrive by eating bollworms and boll weevils.

They feed on plants native to their habitat, such as fruit bushes and cacti.

Most of their hydration (water) comes from consuming insects, but they can drink and bathe in pond water.

8. They make a variety of songs and calls

The whistling calls of the pyruloxia are quite similar to the song of a northern cardinal. An example is his “what-cheer” performed with a softer and more reedy tone.

Males produce about 12 songs, 2 to 3 seconds long, to create and maintain territories. A neighboring male may sing in unison or alternate with another on the boundary lines. Females only sing occasionally when defending the nests.

The song of this bird sounds like a ѕагр, a “chip”, a “cheek” or a metallic “clink” that is finer and shorter in pitch than the song of the cardinal. Calls often occur when flying and searching for food.

9. They only form pair bonds during the breeding season

Pyruloxias pair and bond seasonally during the breeding season.

Once the season is over, they adopt the territory to join flocks in search of food during the winter.

10. The male feeds the female (courtship and incubation)

A male initiates the bond for reproduction. To court a female, the male will bring her food.

The female builds a nest in their now shared territory. The nest is created at a height of 4 to 15 feet above the ground in a tree or thorn bush.

This cup-shaped nest is usually made of thorny pieces, bark and weeds and lined with rootlets, grass and plant fibers.

After mating, the female lays 2 to 5 eggs. These eggs are pale gray or greenish white with brown and gray spots. The female is the only one who incubates the eggs, but the male continues to feed her.

Once the chicks hatch, both parents feed them. Their young leave the nest about 10 days later.