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Columbia, South Carolina – A rare genetic mutation could cause a bright yellow northern cardinal to appear in South Carolina backyards this spring, an occurrence ornithologists estimate may happen in roughly one in a million birds.
Northern cardinals are widely recognized for the male’s vivid red feathers. According to wildlife experts, that coloration comes from carotenoid pigments found in fruits and berries. In extremely rare cases, a genetic mutation prevents those pigments from converting to red, resulting in yellow plumage instead…