https://patti-deters.pixels.com/featured/pyrrhuloxia-desert-cardinal-portrait-patti-deters.html
Thank you for the contest votes of my "Pyrrhuloxia (Desert Cardinal) Portrait" by Patti Deters. These striking songbirds are residents of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and Mexico and are found in hot deserts, dense brush, thorny thickets, and mesquite groves. Pyrrhuloxias (cardinalis sinuatis) are omnivores, eating insects, seeds, and berries; they rarely drink water as it is so scarce in their desert habitat. Instead, they get moisture from juicy eating insects. Pyrrhuloxia look a bit like their cousin, the northern Cardinal; males are grey with lots of red coloring on the tall crest, face, breast, and tail. The bill or beak is golden yellow and thick and somewhat rounded. This particular male bird was photographed in southern Arizona and was very skittish, not staying perched on any one branch for very long. If you like outdoor nature photography, please enjoy more birds and other wildlife images at patti-deters.pixels.com.
FAA Contest, 3rd Place Win, February 2024: https://fineartamerica.com/contests/small-bird-photography.html?tab=leaderboard