• Brian D. Peer/WhyEvolutionisTrue.wordpress
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    A reader of Why Evolution Is True recently submitted photos of a gynandromorph cardinal he spotted. "Gynandromorph" means that this exceptional, winged beauty is part male and part female. 

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    Male cardinals are identified as having a brilliant crimson red color, while female cardinals have fawn, grayish-brown tones. As evidenced in his photos, the bird Brian Peer spotted was half red and half light brown. 

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    How does this happen exactly? Scientists are not really sure. According to Why Evolution Is True, it could be because chromosome loss is involved. However, Live Science theorizes that it is due to an error in the formation of an egg, which normally carries one chromosome to unite with the single chromosome carried by the sperm. If the egg ends up with both a Z and a W chromosome, the egg is then fertilized by two Z-carrying sperm. Thus, the bird will be born with some ZZ cells and some ZW cells. 

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    Next: 50 Cutest Birds Up For Adoption

    Before Brian Peer could gather a blood sample from the bird, it flew away. What exactly happened to the bird is unknown, but one thing is for sure: it's extremely rare.