Half male, half female

The cardinal above is both male and female. Its left side is the taupe shade of female cardinals; its right, the signature scarlet of males.

This is not the first time nor the first species where this has occurred. It has been reported among birds, reptiles, butterflies and crustaceans. The researchers are not totally sure that the bird is half and half without analyzing its genes with a blood test or necroscopy, but the split in plumage down the middle is characteristic of the rare event.