REPLY: Our Yankee Cardinals have the advantage of seeming brighter when seen against the snow, and larger when puffed out for more insulation against the cold. _____ From: Upper Valley Birders [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Connie Snyder Sent: Friday, March 22, 2013 5:49 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: [UVB] Short walk on Lyme River Road (north) Shockingly scarlet cardinal singing his heart out from cherry tree in hedgerow between first fields north of bridge to E. Thetford. Couldn't spot a female. Many years ago in Florida, we used to see lots of cardinals but they were neither as bright, nor as large as the ones we see in New England. Also, working the oaks and ash along the road, one very sharply-dressed pileated woodpecker. Connie Snyder