White-winged Snowfinch

Montifringilla nivalis (Linnaeus, 1766)

16–19 cmLength37 gWeight

It has a gray head, rufous upperparts and white underparts, with a large white patch on the wing in flight.

Busiest months: June · Most records: Mongolia, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

Head gray; upperparts rufous; underparts white
A single long, narrow white panel on wing
Bill black and bib black in summer; bill turns yellow in winter
Large white patches on black wings in flight; tail black with white feather edges

Male, female and young

Sexes differ very little in appearance.

Voice

The song is a continuous chatter with many trills and various rolling or squeaking notes.

Where and when it's recorded

White-winged Snowfinch has been recorded at 24 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 13 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Yolyn Am, Umnugobi, MNMongolia218 records
Khar Chuluut Valley, Jargalant Mountain, Mankhan, Khovd, MNMongolia59 records
/ [Song-Kul Lake / General Area – Karatal Japyryk National Park]Kyrgyzstan11 records

More places

3850 ) [Arabelskye syrty (3850 m)]Kyrgyzstan5 records
Mt Aragats Summit RoadArmenia5 records
Dalangiin bulag, Dalandzadagad city, Ömnögovi, MNMongolia5 records
Khovd Bird Ringing Station, Khovd, MNMongolia5 records
Mt. Kuro slopesGeorgia5 records
NP DurmitorMontenegro4 records
Khukh lake NR, Gurvanbulag, Bayankhongor, MNMongolia4 records

Countries and regions with the most records

Mongolia Kyrgyzstan Georgia Armenia Montenegro Türkiye Kazakhstan China

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 white-winged snowfinch (Montifringilla nivalis) is a small passerine bird. Despite its name, it is a sparrow rather than a true finch.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the White-winged Snowfinch?

The White-winged Snowfinch is about 16–19 cm long and weighs around 37 g.

Where does the White-winged Snowfinch live?

Its breeding range: Palearctic: southwestern, central Palearctic in rocky alpine barrens, meadows, buildings: northern Spain, southern France to Austria, Corsica, Balkans and Greece, southern, eastern Turkey, Caucasus to southwestern Russia, southern, northwestern Iran, central, eastern Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and southeastern Kazakhstan through Xinjiang (northwestern China), far south-central Russia and western, central Mongolia. It is most often recorded in Mongolia, Kyrgyzstan and Georgia.

When is the best time to see the White-winged Snowfinch?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in June (Northern Hemisphere).

Is the White-winged Snowfinch endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the White-winged Snowfinch as Least Concern.

What does the White-winged Snowfinch eat?

Main food: Seeds.

What family is the White-winged Snowfinch in?

It belongs to the family Old World Sparrows, Snowfinches (Passeridae), order Passerines (Passeriformes).

At a glance

Length: 16–19 cm
Weight: 37 g
Habitat: Rocky terrain
Diet: Seeds
Lifestyle: Active on the ground
Migration: Partial migrant
Conservation: Least Concern

More measurements

Wing: 119 mm
Tail: 70 mm
Bill: 14 mm
Tarsus: 21 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

Palearctic: southwestern, central Palearctic in rocky alpine barrens, meadows, buildings: northern Spain, southern France to Austria, Corsica, Balkans and Greece, southern, eastern Turkey, Caucasus to southwestern Russia, southern, northwestern Iran, central, eastern Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and southeastern Kazakhstan through Xinjiang (northwestern China), far south-central Russia and western, central Mongolia

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2

Subspecies · 2

Montifringilla nivalis groumgrzimaili nw China to c Mongolia
Montifringilla nivalis kwenlunensis Kunlun Shan, Altun Shan, and Nan Shan (s Xinjiang, w China)