I found the male Cardinal in a slash pine singing to a female who was nearby. I saw her, but she was flitting branch to branch, too fast for a photograph. He sang and sang. (It's windy, so his top feathers appear as an updo.)
Then he'd fluff up. Sometimes he'd stop singing and turn his head side-to-side, look up, and chase her. Doesn't that sound fun?
In ten minutes they were back. Same dance.
Where are you, partner? (By the way, the female looks like this.)
I wonder if I'll find their nest. If I do, I'll show you their chicks. They'll be something after that song.
UPDATE
First. This is a love story, but not courtship. It's parent and child (well, sort of). All this fuss was a male Cardinal adult with a new fledgling. (I can say this with help from a bird ID group.) A female Cardinal has warm brown colored feathers and a red bill. The bird on the left is a juvenile.
