Bird Album
Italian Sparrow
Passer italiae (Vieillot, 1817)
14–16 cmLength28 gWeight
The Italian sparrow (Passer italiae), also known as the cisalpine sparrow, is a passerine bird of the sparrow family Passeridae, found in Italy and other parts of the Mediterranean region.
Busiest months: April–May and October · Most records: Italy, Vatican City, Slovenia
Where and when it's recorded
Italian Sparrow has been recorded at 53 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 10 countries and regions.
Records by month Northern Hemisphere
Where it's recorded most
- LinosaItaly847 records
- Villa BorgheseItaly680 records
- FirenzeItaly607 records
More places
- RomaItaly548 records
- LungarnoItaly521 records
- Centro Cicogne di RacconigiItaly392 records
- VeneziaItaly383 records
- Isola di VentoteneItaly368 records
- Piazza San PietroVatican City240 records
- Foce del CentaItaly225 records
Countries and regions with the most records
eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.
About
The Italian sparrow (Passer italiae), also known as the cisalpine sparrow, is a passerine bird of the sparrow family Passeridae, found in Italy and other parts of the Mediterranean region. In appearance, it is intermediate between the house sparrow, and the Spanish sparrow, a species of the Mediterranean and Central Asia closely related to the house sparrow.
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Italian Sparrow?
The Italian Sparrow is about 14–16 cm long and weighs around 28 g.
Where does the Italian Sparrow live?
Its breeding range: Palearctic: southern temperate southwestern Palearctic in light woods, parks and cereal fields: southeastern France, southern Switzerland, southern Austria, Italian Peninsula and western Slovenia, Corsica, Sicily, Malta and Crete. It is most often recorded in Italy, Vatican City and Slovenia.
When is the best time to see the Italian Sparrow?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in April, May and October (Northern Hemisphere).
Is the Italian Sparrow endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Italian Sparrow as Vulnerable.
What does the Italian Sparrow eat?
Main food: Seeds.
What family is the Italian Sparrow in?
It belongs to the family Old World Sparrows, Snowfinches (Passeridae), order Passerines (Passeriformes).
At a glance
- Length
- 14–16 cm
- Weight
- 28 g
- Habitat
- Towns & farmland
- Diet
- Seeds
- Lifestyle
- Active on the ground
- Migration
- Resident (barely migrates)
- Conservation
- Vulnerable
More measurements
- Wing
- 77 mm
- Tail
- 56 mm
- Bill
- 15 mm
- Tarsus
- 19 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Palearctic: southern temperate southwestern Palearctic in light woods, parks and cereal fields: southeastern France, southern Switzerland, southern Austria, Italian Peninsula and western Slovenia, Corsica, Sicily, Malta and Crete
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Passerines Passeriformes
- Family
- Old World Sparrows, Snowfinches Passeridae
- Genus
- Passer
Other birds in the genus Passer
Cape SparrowPasser melanurus
Chestnut SparrowPasser eminibey
Kordofan SparrowPasser cordofanicus
Shelley's SparrowPasser shelleyi
Kenya SparrowPasser rufocinctus
Great SparrowPasser motitensis
Northern Grey-headed SparrowPasser griseus
Swainson's SparrowPasser swainsonii
Swahili SparrowPasser suahelicus
Parrot-billed SparrowPasser gongonensis
Southern Grey-headed SparrowPasser diffusus
Sind SparrowPasser pyrrhonotus
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by mauro_fioretto. ↗
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