Asian crimson-winged finch | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Passeriformes |
Family: | Fringillidae |
Subfamily: | Carduelinae |
Genus: | Rhodopechys |
Species: | R. sanguineus |
Binomial name | |
Rhodopechys sanguineus (Gould, 1838) | |
The Asian crimson-winged finch (Rhodopechys sanguineus) is a pale-colored thickset finch with a heavy, dull yellowish bill. It is found from Turkey to NE Pakistan.
The African crimson-winged finch was formerly considered conspecific and together known as the crimson-winged finch. [2]
It is a monotypic species, meaning it doesn't have recognised subspecies. [3]
It has an average length of 13 centimetres (5.1 in) and a wingspan of ca. 32 centimetres (13 in). It is light brown overall, with a whitish mid-belly, a black cap and a pinkish pattern on the wings and tail. The female is slightly duller than the male.
There are several differences between Asian crimson-winged finches and African birds:
Male birds show the following additional differences:
This species lives on rocky mountainsides, often at high elevation. It can be found in barren landscapes with little vegetation, and sometimes nests in rock crevices. It feeds on seeds, and during the winter descends in flocks to agricultural fields to find food. The female lays and incubates 4 or 5 blue, lightly speckled eggs.
This species has a vast range and a large population, meeting neither range nor population size criteria for threat. While the population trend is unknown, it's not declining rapidly enough to approach vulnerability. Therefore, it's classified as "Least Concern" on the IUCN Red List. [1]
The population size in Europe is estimated at 107,000-411,000 mature individuals, comprising about 20% of the global range. This suggests a preliminary global population of 535,000-2,060,000 mature individuals, though further assessment is needed. [4]