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;[[: Category:Passer|Passer]] euchlorus | ;[[: Category:Passer|Passer]] euchlorus | ||
[[Image:AGS2a.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo of Male by {{user|ammadoux|ammadoux}}<br />Jeddah [[ Saudi Arabia]],Oct., 2014]] | [[Image:AGS2a.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo of Male by {{user|ammadoux|ammadoux}}<br />Jeddah [[ Saudi Arabia]],Oct., 2014]] | ||
| + | [[Image:AGS3a.jpg|thumb|450px|right|Photo of Male by {{user|ammadoux|ammadoux}}<br />Jeddah [[ Saudi Arabia]],Oct., 2014]] | ||
==Identification== | ==Identification== | ||
12 - 13cm. | 12 - 13cm. | ||
Revision as of 19:14, 15 October 2014
- Passer euchlorus
Identification
12 - 13cm.
Male
- Golden yellow plumage
- Paler yellow upperwing-coverts with greyish inner webs
- Black flight-feathers with whitish edges
- Black tail feathers with broad white edges
- Dark brown eye
- Flesh-coloured to creamy bill, black in breeding season
Female
- Pale buff or sandy grey plumage
- Wings and tail similar to male
Juveniles are similar to females but have a faint spotting on the upperparts
Distribution
Found in the southwestern tip of the Arabian Peninsula (Saudi Arabia and Yemen) and adjacent Djibouti and extreme coastal northwest Somalia. The presence in Africa is the result of a recent expansion, possibly resulting from escaped cagebirds.
Common in most of its range.
Taxonomy
Monotypic[1].
This taxon is considered a subspecies of Sudan Golden Sparrow by some authors[2]. Both species were formerly placed in the genus Auripasser and form a superspecies.
Habitat
Thorn savanna and scrub habitats. Usually close to cultivated land.
Behaviour
Feeds on seeds of grasses and cereals.
A gregarious species, foraging in small flocks. Outside breeding season in large flocks of thousands of birds.
Breeding recorded from March to July in Yemen. A colonial breeder with 20 to 30 nests in one tree. The nest is an oval dome with a side entrance, made with acacia twigs and plant fibres. It's placed in a tree, mainly acacias. Lays 4 - 6 eggs.
A sedentary species with some local movements outside breeding season.
References
- Clements, JF. 2008. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2008. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.
- Avibase#Del Hoyo, J, A Elliott, and D Christie, eds. 2009. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 14: Bush-shrikes to Old World Sparrows. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553507
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Arabian Golden Sparrow. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 23 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Arabian_Golden_Sparrow
