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Chestnut Sparrow

Passer eminibey

Least Concern · IUCN Red List

LCLeast ConcernSeedsShrublandDomed nestTiny · 13 g
Chestnut Sparrow (Passer eminibey), photo 1
Photo: Sri Srikumar · CC0
Chestnut Sparrow (Passer eminibey), photo 2
Photo: Sri Srikumar · CC0
Chestnut Sparrow (Passer eminibey), photo 3
Photo: Polina · CC BY 4.0
Chestnut Sparrow (Passer eminibey), photo 4
Photo: Barry Stewart · CC BY 4.0
Chestnut Sparrow (Passer eminibey), photo 5
Photo: Tristan Jobin · CC BY 4.0
Chestnut Sparrow (Passer eminibey), photo 6
Photo: Oscar Hopgood · CC BY 4.0
Chestnut Sparrow (Passer eminibey), photo 7
Photo: Hobbyfotowiki · CC0
Chestnut Sparrow (Passer eminibey), photo 8
Photo: gailhampshire from Cradley, Malvern, U.K · CC BY 2.0
Chestnut Sparrow (Passer eminibey), photo 9
Photo: (c) Tristan Jobin, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY
Chestnut Sparrow (Passer eminibey), photo 10
Photo: (c) Annika Lindqvist, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY

ID tip

Like the other members of the sparrow family, the chestnut sparrow is a small, chunky songbird with a thick bill suited to its diet of seeds. At 10.5 to 11.5 cm (4.1–4.5 in) in length, it is the smallest member of the sparrow family. It weighs between 12 grams (0.42 oz) and 17 grams (0.60 oz). Wing length ranges from 6.0 to 6.5 cm (2.4–2.6 in) in males and from 5.7 to 6.0 cm (2.2–2.4 in) in females. The tail, bill, and tarsus lengths are about 4 cm (1.6 in), 1 cm (0.39 in), and 1.5 cm (0.59 in) respectively.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

When to see the Chestnut Sparrow

One bar for each month, and every month is filled: this bird is recorded here in all twelve. The wide bar is November, the month with the most records.

Where to see the Chestnut Sparrow

Regular rangeRare visitor

The map shades 4 countries with regular records, and 2 more in a lighter tone where the bird turns up only as a stray. Everything unshaded has no records. Countries are listed below the map.

Kenya Tanzania Ethiopia Uganda

Recorded as a rare visitor in Somalia, Sudan.

About the Chestnut Sparrow

The chestnut sparrow is a species of passerine bird in the sparrow family Passeridae. It is the smallest member of the sparrow family, at about 11 cm (4.3 in) long. The breeding male has deep chestnut plumage and the female and juvenile are coloured a duller grey with some chestnut markings. Like its closest relatives in the genus Passer, the Arabian golden sparrow and the Sudan golden sparrow, it is gregarious and found in arid areas. Ranging through the east of Africa from Darfur in Sudan to Tanzania, it is found in dry savanna, papyrus swamps, and near human habitation.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Easily confused with

Swahili Sparrow (Passer suahelicus) Swahili SparrowPasser suahelicusThe Swahili sparrow is a passerine bird of the sparrow family Passeridae. Sudan Golden Sparrow (Passer luteus) Sudan Golden SparrowPasser luteusThe Sudan golden sparrow is a smaller sparrow, at 12–13 cm (4.5–5 in) in length, with a wingspan of 5.7–7 cm (2.2–2.8 in). Swainson's Sparrow (Passer swainsonii) Swainson's SparrowPasser swainsoniiThe Swainson's sparrow reaches a body length of 16 centimetres (6.3 in).

Side by side: Chestnut Sparrow vs Swainson's Sparrow · Chestnut Sparrow vs Sudan Golden Sparrow

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