Expert: Roger Lederer - 2/5/2009

Question
Hi again Roger.  I don't know if you remember but several months ago I asked for help with an injured Cardinal female.  Well, she's still with me (yes, authorities were notified) and she seems to be doing great, I rescued her from my pond last March after she had been attacked by a hawk.  The wing has healed but she can't fly, she sort of flutters about a foot off the floor for short distances.  After we rescued her and realized we wouldn't be able to release her I made the decision to take care of her and got the largest cage I could find and brought her in the house.  Almost immediately, she started singing, I could even whistle to her and she'd whistle back.  Then, last fall she stopped singing.  I thought she was sick, depressed, etc., but she was still acting perky and eating well.  Now, recently we've heard her sing a couple of times but that's all.  I read that Cardinals could live as long as 15 years and that in the 1800's they were kept as cage birds because of their singing.  That's why I was surprised when she stopped singing.  So, my questions are, is it normal behavior for a Cardinal to only sing during certain times of the year ?  Could you estimate how long she may live ?  And, I've been putting a liquid multi-vitamin (Vita-Sol) in her water since we rescued her but is there anything else I could or should be doing for her to keep her healthy ?  Thanks, Becky Hall

Answer
Cardinals, like most songbirds, typically only sing during the breeding season. The increased amount of daylight causes certain hormones in the body to increase and that in turn induces singing. Experiments have shown that increasing the amount of light can increase singing. But that can also induce molting and aggressive behaviors and is generally not good for the birds. I suspect that when spring rolls around again she will sing again. (I'm assuming the bird is exposed to normal daylight.)
She could live as long as 10-12 years in captivity, but who knows. Whatever you have been doing seems to be the right thing, but the wider a variety of foods she will eat, the better.