CARDINAL MOLT: You like cardinals now, but wait 'til they 
molt [03 " ... not very pretty."] Ahead on Passport to Texas. 

This is Passport to Texas

Imagine the sleek, bright red body of a male cardinal 
topped with a small, lumpy black walnut-shaped head. 
That's what you'll see mid to late summer when cardinals 
molt. 

05- Feather molt is really important because feathers fray, 
they're fragile. 

You don't want to look, but you can't look away. TPW 
Ornithologist Cliff Shackelford says cardinal's head 
feathers fall out over a short amount of time. While a bird 
with a naked noggin may be shocking, Cliff says "don't 
fret."

07- All we're doing is witnessing that annual molt that replaces 
those old feathers-and he's about to get new ones.

Their head feathers regrow within a few weeks. And, 
mercifully for the cardinals, they lose body and flight 
feathers at a more leisurely pace. 

14- They just lose a couple at a time and they can still fly. So, 
most of our land birds and songbirds like the Cardinal don't lose 
all their flight feathers at once because they would never make it. 
They wouldn't be able to flee from predators and keep warm with 
the weather.

This summer, if you see a red bird that looks like it was 
put together with spare parts, it's probably a cardinal 
suffering the humiliation of molting. Try not to point and 
laugh. 

For Texas Parks and Wildlife ... I'm Cecilia Nasti







Total sound bite time:		     0:26.0
Maximum Script time:		     0:59.0      Suggested show time: 85.0 = 1:25