Northern Cardinal

I was happy to get this shot of a Northern Cardinal in a park near my home.  He seemed as surprised as I was that he let me get this close to him!

Shifts in the cardinal's taxonomic nomenclature are interesting.  According to Wikepedia (I know - I know!), it was first assigned to the genus Loxia.  Then, in 1883 it was placed in the genus Cardinalis, and was called Cardinalis virginianus - meaning Virginia Cardinal.  In 1918, its designation changed to Richmondena cardinalis, to honor a famous ornithologist.  And then in 1983, it became Cardinalis cardinalis, when its common name was changed to Northern Cardinal to distinguish it from seven other species of cardinals.