Pictures of Red Birds at Rockefeller State Park Preserve

This gallery features pictures of male and female northern cardinals, house finches, and scarlet tanagers found at Rockefeller State Park Preserve. Northern cardinals are my favorite birds to photograph, and their personalities are evident in their eyes and in how their crest is positioned. They reside year-round at the park and are monogamous, so the males and females travel together, adding photo opportunities. I have a site dedicated to northern cardinals that you can visit here.

While you can see and photograph northern cardinals in many areas of the park, I’ve had the best luck capturing cardinals on the Farm to Meadow trail between the Maple Loop and Swan Lake. During the late fall and winter months, the Farm to Meadow Trail between the Ash Tree Loop and Swan Lake is excellent.

Since the male house finch has red coloring, I’ve included them in this gallery. I’ve photographed house finches in various parts of the park, so I don’t have a “favorite trail” that is better than others. Many of them used to be at the corral on the Ash Tree Loop. Unfortunately, the corral has been taken down, and the bird population in that area has declined.

Scarlet tanagers are beautiful migratory birds, and I’ve not seen them stay long in the park as they move northbound or southbound. Interestingly, while the male scarlet tanager is bright red, the female is a striking yellow.  I’ve captured them on the Ash Tree Loop and Greenrock Road trails. You can learn about these trails here.

Click on a picture below to open the full-size gallery. Controls at the bottom center of the photos let you navigate through the gallery, start a slide show, or close the gallery. Enjoy the pictures!