Cardinal (Pyrrhuloxia)

The name "Pyrrhuloxia" is a combination of the genus names Pyrrhula (bullfinches) and Loxia (crossbills). The roots mean "flame-colored" and "crooked," and aptly describe the reddish bird with the crooked bill. At a quick glance some get this fellow mixed up with the female Northern Cardinal... but the Grey colour gives him away. Some refer to it as a Grey Cardinal in Tucson. 

The Pyrrhuloxia lives in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. A thick-billed, reddish bird with a crest, it superficially resembles its close relative, the Northern Cardinal.

Where both the Pyrrhuloxia and Northern Cardinal breed, territories of the two species may overlap, and no conflicts have been recorded between the species. Tucson, AZ