Female Cardinal Preening

Female cardinal preening along the Lake to Lake Trail in Columbia (Wilde Lake to Lake Kittamaqundi). She is one of only about two or three types of birds I found several days ago. I went looking for a hawk that has been spotted along that trail recently with no luck. She let me get surprisingly close (about six feet) for a couple minutes. The photos I took of her just sitting there made me realize how fluffy some birds get in winter.

Lens - Tamron 100-400mm f/4.5-6.3 Di VC USD @ 400mm on Nikon D5500