Editing Spanish sparrow

{{Short description|Species of bird}}
{{Speciesbox
 | status              = LC
 | status_system       = IUCN3.1
 | status_ref          = <ref name="iucn status 12 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2019 |title=''Passer hispaniolensis'' |volume=2019 |page=e.T22718179A154494920 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T22718179A154494920.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>
 | image               = Passer Hispaniolensis Male.JPG
 | image_caption       = Male in [[Sardinia]]
 | taxon = Passer hispaniolensis
 | authority  = ([[Coenraad Jacob Temminck|Temminck]], 1820)
 | range_map           = 
 | range_map_caption   = 
 | synonyms            = 
}}

The '''Spanish sparrow''' or '''willow sparrow''' ('''''Passer hispaniolensis''''') is a [[passerine]] bird of the [[Old World sparrow|sparrow]] [[family (biology)|family]] Passeridae. It is found in the [[Mediterranean region]] and [[Palearctic|south-west and central Asia]]. It is very similar to the closely related [[house sparrow]], and the two species show their close relation in a "biological mix-up" of hybridisation in the Mediterranean region, which complicates the taxonomy of this species.

== Description ==
[[File:Passer hispaniolensis -Canary Islands, Spain -female-8 (1).jpg|thumb|Female in the Canary Islands (Note the streaked breast)]]
The Spanish sparrow is a rather large sparrow, at {{convert|15|–|16|cm|in|round=0.5|abbr=on}} in length, and {{convert|22|–|36|g|oz|abbr=on}} in weight. It is slightly larger and heavier than house sparrows, and also has a slightly longer and stouter bill.<ref name=bwp/> The male is similar to the house sparrow in plumage, but differs in that its underparts are heavily streaked with black, has a [[chestnut (color)|chestnut]] rather than grey crown, and has white rather than grey cheeks.<ref>{{harvnb|Clement|Harris|Davis|1993|pp=446–447}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Shelley|1902|pp=235–237}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Dresser|1902|p=291}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Moineaux domestiques et Moineaux espagnols, ''Passer domesticus'' et ''P. hispaniolensis'', dans une région de l'ouest algérien : analyse comparative de leur morphologie externe|journal=Le Gerfaut |year=1986|author=Metzmacher, M.|volume=76|pages=317–334|language=fr, en}}</ref> The female is effectively inseparable from the house sparrow in its basic plumage, which is grey-brown overall but more boldly marked. The female has light streaking on its sides, a pale cream [[supercilium]], and broad cream streaks on its back.<ref name="Summers164–165"/><ref>{{harvnb|Oates|1890|p=239}}</ref>

Two subspecies of the Spanish sparrow – the '''western Spanish sparrow''' (''P. h. hispaniolensis'') and '''eastern Spanish sparrow''' (''P. h. transcaspicus'') – are recognised, with little visible difference between them in worn breeding plumage. They are more easily distinguished in fresh winter plumage, with the eastern subspecies ''P. h. transcaspicus'' being paler with less chestnut.<ref name="Summers164–165">{{harvnb|Summers-Smith|1988| pp=164–165}}</ref>

<gallery mode = packed heights = 180px>
Spanish sparrow (Passer hispaniolensis) male breeding plumage ringed Malta.jpg|ringed male (breeding plumage) in Malta
Spanish sparrow (Passer hispaniolensis) female ringed Malta.jpg|ringed female in Malta
</gallery>

=== Voice ===
[[File:Passer hispaniolensis song algeria.jpg|thumb|right|Sonogram of a male Spanish sparrow's song]]
The Spanish sparrow's [[Bird vocalization|vocalisations]] are similar to those of the house sparrow. The male gives a call somewhat different from that of the house sparrow when displaying at its nest. This call is a pair of strident, disyllabic chirps, similar to those of the house sparrow, but louder and high-pitched, transcribed as ''{{not a typo|chweeng-chweeng, cheela-cheeli}}''. A similar call, softer and more like the house sparrow's ''{{not a typo|tschilp}}'', is used by birds arriving or departing at roosting sites. The Spanish sparrow's other calls are almost the same as those of the house sparrow. A soft ''{{not a typo|quer quer quer}}'' is given at the nest by mated pairs, a ''{{not a typo|quer-it}}'' [[flight call]] is given by flocking birds, and a ''{{not a typo|chur-chur-it}}'' call is given as a threat.<ref name="Summers177">{{harvnb|Summers-Smith|1988| p=177}}</ref>

== Taxonomy and systematics ==
[[File:PasserHispaniolensisGould.jpg|thumb|upright|An illustration by [[John Gould]] of a male Spanish sparrow (above) and an Italian sparrow pair]]
Its taxonomy is greatly complicated by the "biological mix-up" it forms with the house sparrow in the Mediterranean. In most of the Mediterranean, one or both of the two species occurs, with only a limited degree of [[Hybrid (biology)|hybridisation]]. On the [[Italian Peninsula]] and [[Corsica]], the two species are replaced by the [[Italian sparrow]], a puzzling type of sparrow apparently intermediate between the Spanish sparrow and the house sparrow.<ref name=bwp/><ref name="Töpfer"/>

The Italian sparrow has been classified as a hybrid between the Spanish sparrow and the house sparrow, a subspecies of the Spanish sparrow, a subspecies of the house sparrow and/or a separate species. The Spanish sparrow also hybridises freely with the house sparrow in parts of North Africa (northeastern [[Algeria]], [[Tunisia]], and northwestern [[Libya]]), forming highly variable mixed populations with a full range of characters from pure house sparrows to pure Spanish sparrows.<ref name=bwp>{{harvnb|Snow|Perrins|1998|pp=1506–1509}}</ref><ref name="Töpfer">{{cite journal|last=Töpfer|first=Till|year=2006|title=The taxonomic status of the Italian Sparrow – ''Passer italiae'' (Vieillot 1817): Speciation by stabilised hybridisation? A critical analysis|journal=Zootaxa|volume=1325|pages=117–145|doi=10.11646/zootaxa.1325.1.8|issn=1175-5334}}</ref> On the Mediterranean islands of [[Malta]], [[Gozo]], [[Crete]], [[Rhodes]] and [[Karpathos]], there are more apparently intermediate birds of unknown status.<ref>{{harvnb|Summers-Smith|1988|pp=169–170}}</ref>

The Spanish sparrow was first described by the Dutch zoologist [[Coenraad Jacob Temminck]] as ''Fringilla hispaniolensis'', from a specimen collected at [[Algeciras]], in southern Spain. The usual English name refers to the description of the species from Spain. The name ''willow sparrow'', referring to the moist habitat of this bird, is sometimes used, especially when the Italian sparrow is considered the same species.<ref name="Töpfer"/><ref name="Summers162–163">{{harvnb|Summers-Smith|1988|pp= 162–163}}</ref> The genus name ''Passer'' is the [[Latin]] word for sparrow, and ''hispaniolensis'' is  [[Neo-Latin]] for "Spanish".<ref name =job>{{cite book | last= Jobling | first= James A. | year= 2010| title= The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names | url= https://archive.org/details/Helm_Dictionary_of_Scientific_Bird_Names_by_James_A._Jobling | publisher=Christopher Helm | location = London, United Kingdom | isbn = 978-1-4081-2501-4 | pages =[https://archive.org/details/Helm_Dictionary_of_Scientific_Bird_Names_by_James_A._Jobling/page/n193 193], 294}}</ref>

Two [[subspecies]] of Spanish sparrow are usually recognised, the western [[nominate subspecies]] ''hispaniolensis'', and the eastern ''transcaspicus'', described by Austrian ornithologist [[Viktor von Tschusi zu Schmidhoffen]] in 1902 from [[Ýolöten]], Turkmenistan.<ref name="Summers162–163"/> Birds in [[Anatolia]] and [[Cyprus]] are usually considered to belong to ''P. h. transcaspicus'', but birds as far east as [[Ceylanpınar]] have been noted as intermediates and the difference between the two subspecies may actually be [[Cline (biology)|clinal]].<ref name="SummersTranscaspicus"/>

== Distribution and habitat ==
The Spanish sparrow has a highly complex distribution in the [[Mediterranean region]], [[Macaronesia]], and southwest to central [[Asia]]. It breeds mostly in a band of [[latitude]] about 15 degrees wide, from the [[Danube]] Valley and the [[Aral Sea]] in the north to [[Libya]] and central [[Iran]] in the south.<ref name="SummersHispaniolensis">{{harvnb|Summers-Smith|1988|pp=165–169}}</ref> Its range has expanded greatly by natural colonisation over the last two centuries, in the [[Balkans]], where it reached [[Romania]], [[Serbia]], and [[Moldova]] from 1950 onwards;<ref name=bwp/><ref>{{cite journal|title=The range of the Spanish sparrow, ''Passer hispaniolensis'' (Temminck) in Bosnia and Herzegovina|last=Obratil|first=S.|year=1985|journal=Larus|volume=36–37|pages=49–57}}</ref> and in Macaronesia, where its range expansion has been attributed to introductions and travel by ship, but was more likely natural colonisation by migrating birds.<ref name="colonists">{{harvnb|Summers-Smith|1992|pp=42–47}}</ref> [[Vagrancy (biology)|Vagrants]] occur widely, as far north as [[Scotland]] and [[Norway]].<ref name=bwp/><ref name="SummersHispaniolensis"/>

A study has shown that vagrant individuals tend to occur very close to railway lines, much closer than with other vagrant passerines. This results suggests that Spanish sparrows' vagrancy and expansion may be facilitated in part by cargo trains.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Rozsa|first=L.|year=2018|title=Railway-facilitated dispersal of the Spanish Sparrow (''Passer hispaniolensis'') during its current range expansion in the Pannonian Basin|journal= BioInvasions Records|volume=7|issue=4|pages=469–473|url=http://www.reabic.net/journals/bir/2018/4/BIR_2018_Rozsa.pdf|doi=10.3391/bir.2018.7.4.20|doi-access=free}}</ref>
[[File:SpanishSparrowMap.svg|thumb|center|600px|Distribution of the Spanish and Italian sparrows<!-- <div style="text-align:left;"><big>{{legend2 |#4BE44B|''P. h. hispaniolensis'' breeding range}}<br />{{legend2 |#008000|''P. h. transcaspicus'' breeding range}}<br />{{legend2 |#60DDDD|Winter range}}<br />{{legend2| #DF5BDF|[[Italian sparrow]] range}}<br/></big></div>
Other colours represent zones of hybridisation -->]]

=== Subspecies ''hispaniolensis'' ===
[[File:Passer hispaniolensis male on wire.jpg|thumb|upright|A male in Sardinia]]
The western subspecies ''hispaniolensis'' breeds in parts of [[Iberia]] and [[North Africa]], some islands, and the Balkans. In Iberia it is uncommon, occurring in the [[Tagus]] valley and sporadically in the northern [[Meseta Central|meseta]], the eastern coast, and in the [[Guadalquivir]] and [[Guadiana]] valleys.<ref name="SummersHispaniolensis"/><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Roman, J. |author2=Onrubia, A. |author3=Roviralta, F. |author4=Balmori, A. |author5=Fernandez, J. |author6=Sanz-Zuasti, J. |author7=Gutierrez, C. |author8=Jubete, F. |author9=Roman, F. |author10=Garcia, J. |author11=Olea, P. P. |title=Sobre el status del gorrion moruno, ''Passer hispaniolensis'' (Temminck, 1820), en la submeseta norte |journal=Ecología |volume=11 |year=1997 |pages=453–456 |url=http://www.mma.es/secciones/el_ministerio/organismos/oapn/pdf/ecologia_11_25.pdf |archive-date=2012-04-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120420103351/http://www.mma.es/secciones/el_ministerio/organismos/oapn/pdf/ecologia_11_25.pdf |location=Madrid |language=es |access-date=2010-11-12 |url-status=live }}</ref> While the house sparrow and the Spanish sparrow form a "hybrid swarm" in the eastern half of the [[Maghreb]], they coexist with little hybridisation in the western half.<ref name="SummersHispaniolensis"/><ref>{{cite journal|title=La distribution des Moineaux, ''Passer'', en Algérie : observations complémentaires|journal=Le Gerfaut|year=1986|author=Metzmacher, M.|volume=76|pages=131–138|language=fr, en, nl|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110926224947/http://users.belgacom.net/fayenbois/passer/ph_distribution.pdf|archive-date=2011-09-26|url=http://users.belgacom.net/fayenbois/passer/ph_distribution.pdf|access-date=2011-07-25|url-status=live}}</ref> In northern Italy and Corsica, the Spanish sparrow is replaced by the Italian sparrow and the two [[Intergradation|intergrade]] in southern Italy, as well as [[Malta]], [[Crete]] and nearby islands such as [[Rhodes]].<ref name="SummersHispaniolensis"/> The Spanish sparrow is not known to breed in the [[Balearic Islands]], the [[Aegean Islands]], [[Corfu]] or the [[Peloponnese]], but it occurs on Sardinia, [[Pantelleria]] and smaller islands near the coast. In the Balkans, it occurs patchily from [[Montenegro]] across into the Danube Valley of Romania and northern Serbia. It is found in mainland [[Greece]] and [[Bulgaria]], where it is also uncommon.<ref name="SummersHispaniolensis"/><ref>{{cite journal|last=Sladen|first=Alexander B.|year=1918|title=Further Notes on the Birds of Macedonia|journal=The Ibis|series=10|volume=6|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/16282106}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Chasen|first=F. N.|year=1921|title=Field Notes on the Birds of Macedonia. With special reference to the Struma Plain|journal=The Ibis|series=11|volume=3|issue=2|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8759902}}</ref>

The Spanish sparrow is likely to have been established on the western Canary Islands for some time, as it was found on [[Lanzarote]] when a naturalist first visited the island in 1828. In the 1830s, it was recorded on [[Fuerteventura]], [[Gran Canaria]] and [[Tenerife]] and since the 1940s it has reached all the other islands.<ref name="SummersHispaniolensis"/><ref name="colonists"/> It reached Madeira in May 1935, when numbers of sparrows were found across the island after nine days of strong, continuous easterly winds.<ref name=bwp/><ref name="colonists"/> It seems to have reached Cape Verde around the same time it reached the Canaries and it was first recorded there on [[Santiago, Cape Verde|Santiago]] by [[Charles Darwin]] in 1832. From then onwards it reached all the other larger islands, in a poorly recorded extension of its range.<ref name="SummersHispaniolensis"/><ref name="colonists"/><ref>{{harvnb|Gould|1838|p=95}}</ref>

=== Subspecies ''transcaspicus'' ===
[[File:Passer hispaniolensis-2.jpg|thumb|A male and a female of the eastern subspecies (''P. h. transcaspicus'') in southeastern Turkey]]
[[File:Passer hispaniolensis Israel 2.jpg|thumb|upright|A male of the eastern subspecies (''P. h. transcaspicus'') in Israel]]
The eastern subspecies ''transcaspicus'' breeds from [[Anatolia]] and [[Cyprus]] through the Middle East and Central Asia to far western China. In the Middle East, it breeds through [[Syria]] and [[Lebanon]] to about as far south as [[Jerusalem]]. It breeds in eastern [[Turkey]], but is a very rare breeder in [[Iraq]] and [[Kuwait]].<ref name="SummersTranscaspicus"/> It breeds sporadically in [[Azerbaijan]] and [[Dagestan]], north to the [[Terek River]] Valley. In Iran, it breeds in most of the country except the Persian Gulf region, also breeding in central and northern Afghanistan. In Central Asia, it breeds from the regions of the [[Turkmenistan]]-Iran and [[Tajikistan]]-Afghanistan borders north to parts of the [[Syr Darya]] basin in Kazakhstan, and westwards to [[Lake Alakol]], the [[Karatal River]], and a corner of China.<ref name="SummersTranscaspicus">{{harvnb|Summers-Smith|1988| pp=170–171}}</ref> Here it has also expanded its range, in the area around Lake Alakol in [[Kazakhstan]], where agriculture was not developed until the 1950s.<ref>{{cite book|last=Summers-Smith|first=J. D.|contribution=Changes in distribution and habitat utilisation by members of the genus ''Passer''|pages=11–29|title=Granivorous birds in the agricultural landscape|editor=Pinowski, J.|editor2=Summers-Smith, J. D.|year=1990|publisher=Pánstwowe Wydawnictom Naukowe|location=Warszawa|isbn=978-83-01-08460-8}}</ref> It winters in the plains of the Indian subcontinent and the Persian Gulf.<ref name="SummersTranscaspicus"/>

=== Habitat ===
[[File:Passer hispaniolensis nid Oranie.jpg|thumb|A nest in an acacia hedge in [[Es Sénia]], Algeria]]
In most of its range, the Spanish sparrow occurs alongside the house sparrow. In such areas, both species breed in farmland and open [[woodland]], with the Spanish sparrow preferring moister habitats. In areas where house sparrows are absent, the Spanish sparrow may live in urban habitats, as in the Canary Islands, Madeira, and some Mediterranean islands. In a few urban areas, such as those in eastern [[Sardinia]], the primary sparrow species is the [[Eurasian tree sparrow]].<ref>{{harvnb|Summers-Smith|1988|pp=171–172}}</ref> Before the Spanish sparrow arrived in the Canary Islands and Madeira, the [[rock sparrow]] was the sole native sparrow. In the Canaries, the Spanish sparrow occurs in most habitats, having ousted the rock sparrow from all but the driest localities. In Madeira the Spanish sparrow is common in cultivated areas, but it has not fully adapted to nesting in buildings or breeding in the drier north of the island.<ref name="SummersHispaniolensis"/><ref name="colonists"/><ref>{{cite journal|author=Lack, David|author-link=David Lack|title=The numbers of bird species on islands|year=1969|journal=Bird Study|volume=16|issue=4|pages=193–209|doi=10.1080/00063656909476244|doi-access=free|bibcode=1969BirdS..16..193L }}</ref> The Spanish sparrow is not common on most of the [[Cape Verde]] islands, due to the presence of the [[endemism|endemic]] [[Iago sparrow]], and the house sparrow on [[São Vicente, Cape Verde|São Vicente]]. On [[Fogo, Cape Verde|Fogo]], where it is the sole species of sparrow, it is common in all habitats, breeding both in the houses of [[São Filipe, Cape Verde|São Filipe]] and on the cliff walls of the volcano [[Pico do Fogo]].<ref name="SummersHispaniolensis"/><ref name="colonists"/>

== Behaviour and ecology ==
[[File:Passer hispaniolensis nest Lesbos.jpg|thumb|A male in a nest in [[Lesbos]], Greece]]
The Spanish sparrow is strongly gregarious, flocking and breeding in groups. In the winter, it mostly wanders nomadically or makes regular [[bird migration|migrations]].<ref name=bwp/><ref>{{cite journal|title=Organisation spatio-temporelle de la reproduction chez le Moineau espagnol ''Passer hispaniolensis'' en zone semi-aride|journal=[[L'Oiseau et la Revue française d'Ornithologie]]|year=1986|author=Metzmacher, M.|volume=56|pages=229–262|language=fr, en|hdl=2268/162264}}</ref>

Little is known of the Spanish sparrow's survival rate, and the maximum age recorded is 11 years.<ref name="Summers177"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://genomics.senescence.info/species/entry.php?species=Passer_hispaniolensis|title=AnAge entry for ''Passer hispaniolensis''|work=AnAge: the Animal Ageing and Longevity Database|access-date=25 June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Cramp|Perrins|1994|p=311}}</ref>

=== Feeding ===
Like other sparrows, it feeds principally on the seeds of grains and other grasses, also eating leaves, fruits, and other plant materials. Young birds are fed mostly on insects, and adults also feed on insects and other animals during and before the breeding season.<ref name="SummersFood">{{harvnb|Summers-Smith|1988| pp=178–179}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Diet of the Spanish sparrow, ''Passer hispaniolensis'' (Temm.), in Morocco; seasonal and geographic variations|journal=Actes de l'Institut Agronomique et Vétérinaire Hassan II, Morocco|year=1984|author1=El-Sehhar, A. |author2=Fraval, A. |name-list-style=amp |volume=4|issue=1|pages=53–61}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|author=Ali, Sálim|year=1963| title=A Note on the Eastern Spanish Sparrow, ''Passer hispaniolensis transcaspicus'' Tschusi, in India|journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society|volume=60|issue=2|pages=318–321|url=https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/48053485}}</ref> Nestlings are fed almost exclusively on insects for their first few days, and are gradually fed larger amounts of grains.<ref name="GavrilovJBNHS"/> The portion of insects in nestling diets is recorded at a range from 75 to over 90 percent.<ref>{{cite journal|journal=Ardeola|volume=50|issue=1|year=2003|pages=71–75|title=Variation of Nestling Diet Across the Breeding Season in Spanish Sparrow ''Passer hispaniolensis'' in Southern Portugal|first1=Paulo M.|last1=Marques|first2=Mário|last2=Boieiro|first3=Filipe|last3=Canário|first4=Luís|last4=Vicente|url=http://www.ardeola.org/files/523.pdf|archive-date=2011-09-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930191829/http://www.ardeola.org/files/523.pdf|access-date=2011-08-02|url-status=live}}</ref> In preying on insects, the Spanish sparrow is opportunistic, feeding on whichever insects are most common.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Le menu des jeunes Moineaux domestiques, ''Passer domesticus'' L., et espagnols, ''Passer hispaniolensis'' Temm., en Oranie (Algérie)|author=Metzmacher, M.|year=1983|journal=Cahiers d'Éthologie Appliquée|volume=3|issue=2|pages=191–294|url=http://users.skynet.be/cnp/publications/pdf/n_diet_resume.pdf|format=PDF, French abstract only|language=fr, en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121022193936/http://users.skynet.be/cnp/publications/pdf/n_diet_resume.pdf|archive-date=2012-10-22|access-date=2010-07-03|url-status=live}}</ref> In Central Asia, these are caterpillars, ants, grasshoppers, and crickets.<ref name="SummersFood"/> While migrating through Central Asia in the spring, the Spanish sparrow feeds mostly on crops in cultivated areas, and while breeding it feeds mostly on insects, wild plants, and seeds from the previous year.<ref name="GavrilovJBNHS">{{cite journal|author=Gavrilov, E. I.|title=The Biology of the Eastern Spanish Sparrow, ''Passer hispaniolensis transcaspicus'' in Kazakhstan|journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society|volume=60|issue=2|url=https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/48053464|pages=301–317|year=1963}}</ref>

===Breeding===
[[File:Passer hispaniolensis hispaniolensis MHNT.ZOO.2010.11.208.jpg|thumb|Eggs]]
The Spanish sparrow nests in large colonies of closely spaced or even multiple shared nests. Nests are usually placed in trees or bushes, amongst branches or underneath the nests of larger birds such as [[white stork]]s. Colonies may hold from ten pairs to hundreds of thousands of pairs.<ref>{{harvnb|Summers-Smith|1988|pp=173–177}}</ref> Each pair lays 3–8 eggs, which hatch in 12 days, with the chicks fledging when about 14 days old.<ref name=bwp/><ref name="GavrilovIbis">{{cite journal|author=Gavrilov, E. I.|title=A Contribution to the Biology of the Spanish Sparrow ''Passer hispaniolensis transcaspicus''|journal=The Ibis|volume=104|issue=3|year=1962|pages=416–417|doi=10.1111/j.1474-919X.1962.tb08669.x}}</ref> Males spend more time constructing nests than females.<ref>{{cite book|last=Metzmacher|first=Maxime|contribution=Climatic factors, activity budgets and breeding success of the Spanish Sparrow [''Passer hispaniolensis'' (Temm.)]|pages=11–29|title=Granivorous birds in the agricultural landscape|editor=Pinowski, J.|editor2=Summers-Smith, J. D.|year=1990|publisher=Pánstwowe Wydawnictom Naukowe|location=Warszawa|isbn=978-83-01-08460-8|url=http://users.skynet.be/cnp/publications/pdf/budget_passer.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121022182722/http://users.skynet.be/cnp/publications/pdf/budget_passer.pdf|archive-date=2012-10-22|access-date=2010-05-21|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Status ==
The European population of the Spanish sparrow comprises between 2,800,000 and 6,200,000 breeding pairs or 8,400,000–18,600,000 individuals. Partly from the European population, the global population is estimated to be between 17 and 74 million individuals.<ref name="iucn status 12 November 2021" /><ref name="BiE">{{cite book|author=BirdLife International|year=2004|title=Birds in Europe: population estimates, trends and conservation status|url=http://www.birdlife.org/action/science/species/birds_in_europe/index.html|location=Cambridge, England|publisher=BirdLife International|series=Conservation Series No. 12|page=263|chapter-url=http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/userfiles/file/Species/BirdsInEuropeII/BiE2004Sp8368.pdf|chapter=''Passer hispaniolensis'', Spanish Sparrow}}</ref> There have been population decreases in some parts of Europe, but in other areas the population has increased<ref name="BiE"/><ref name="Dinetti">{{cite journal|last=Dinetti|first=Marco|journal=Avocetta|volume=32|year=2008|title=I passeri ''Passer'' spp.: da "problematici" a specie di interesse conservazionistico|pages=61–68|url=http://www.ciso-coi.org/avoxvol32.htm|access-date=20 April 2010|trans-title=The Sparrows ''Passer'' spp.: from "pest species" to species of conservation concern|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100505141127/http://www.ciso-coi.org/avoxvol32.htm|archive-date=2010-05-05|url-status=usurped}}</ref> and the species is not seriously threatened, so it is assessed as [[least concern]] on the [[IUCN Red List]].<ref name="iucn status 12 November 2021" />

== References ==
{{Reflist|22em}}

===Works cited===
{{Refbegin}}
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*{{cite book|editor-last1=Cramp|editor-first1=S.|editor-last2=Perrins|editor-first2=C. M.|year=1994|title=Handbook of the Birds of Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa: The Birds of the Western Palearctic|volume=8|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-854679-5|title-link=Handbook of the Birds of Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa: The Birds of the Western Palearctic}}
*{{cite book|last=Dresser|first=H. E.|author-link=Henry Eeles Dresser|year=1902|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/23805835|title=A manual of palæarctic birds|volume=1|location=London|publisher=Self-published}}
* {{cite book|last=Gould|first=John|editor=Darwin, Charles|year=1838|title=The Zoology of the H.M.S. Beagle, under the command of Captain Robert Fitzroy, R. N., during the years 1832 to 1836. Part III: Birds|location=London|publisher=Smith, Elder, and Company|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/14216}}
*{{cite book|last=Oates|first=Eugene W.|author-link=Eugene William Oates|year=1890|title=Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma: Birds|volume=II|publisher=Taylor and Francis|location=London|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/25658}}
*{{cite book|last=Shelley|first=G. E.|year=1902|title=The Birds of Africa, Comprising All the Species Which Occur in the Ethiopian Region|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/14123|volume=III|location=London|publisher=R. H. Porter}}
*{{Cite book|last1=Snow|first1=D. W.|author-link=David Snow (ornithologist)|last2=Perrins|first2=C. M.|year=1998|title=The Birds of the Western Palearctic|edition=Concise|location=Oxford|publisher= Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-854099-1}}
*{{Cite book|last=Summers-Smith|first=J. Denis|year=1988|author-link=J. Denis Summers-Smith|others=illustrated by [[Robert Gillmor]]|title=The Sparrows: a Study of the Genus Passer|publisher=T. & A. D. Poyser|location=Calton, Staffs, England|isbn=978-0-85661-048-6|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/sparrowsstudyofg0000summ}}
*{{cite book|last=Summers-Smith |first=J. Denis|title=In Search of Sparrows|publisher=T. & A. D. Poyser|year=1992 |location=London |isbn=978-0-85661-073-8|others=illustrated by Euan Dunn}}
{{Refend}}

=== Further reading ===
{{Refbegin}}
*{{cite journal|last=Gavrilov|first=E. I. |year=1968|title=A possible regulation mechanism of the sex ratio in the ''Passer hispaniolensis'' Temm.|journal=Intern. Stud. Sparrows|volume= 2 |pages=20–24}}
*{{cite journal|last=Meise|first= W. |year=1936|title= Zur Systematik und Verbreitungsgesghichte der Haus- und Weidensperlinge, ''Passer domesticus'' (L.) und ''hispaniolensis'' (T)|journal=J. Orn.|volume=94 |issue= 4 |pages=631–672|language=de|doi= 10.1007/BF01951015 |bibcode= 1936JOrni..84..631M |s2cid= 39371043 }}
*{{cite thesis|last=Metzmacher|first= M.|year=1985|title=Stratégies adaptatives des oiseaux granivores dans une zone semi-aride. Le cas des moineaux domestiques ''Passer domesticus'' L. et des moineaux espagnols ''Passer hispaniolensis'' TEMM.|hdl= 2268/162205|language=fr}}
*{{cite journal|last=Metzmacher|first=M.|year=1990|title=Climatic factors, time activity budget and breeding success of the Spanish sparrow (''Passer hispaniolensis'' TEMM.)|journal= Proceedings of General Meetings of the Working Group on Granivorous Birds, INTECOL|hdl=2268/162547|isbn=9788301084608|publisher=Polish Scientific Publishers}}
*{{cite book|last=Ogilvie-Grant|first=W. R.|author-link=William Robert Ogilvie-Grant|title=Catalogue of the collection of birds' eggs in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume V: Carinatæ (Passeriformes completed)|year=1912|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/12377|location=London|publisher=Taylor and Francis}}
*{{cite book|last=Sharpe|first=R. Bowdler|author-link=Richard Bowdler Sharpe|year=1888|title=Catalogue of the Passeriformes, or Perching Birds, in the Collection of the British Museum. Fringilliformes: Part III. Containing the Family Fringillidæ|volume=XII|url=https://archive.org/details/catalogueofbirds12brit|publisher=Taylor and Francis|location=London}}
*{{cite book|last=Shirihai|first=Hadoram|year=1996|title=The Birds of Israel|publisher=Academic Press|location=London|isbn=978-0-12-640255-1}}
{{Refend}}

== External links ==
{{Commons|Passer hispaniolensis}}
{{Wikispecies|Passer hispaniolensis}}
* [http://ibc.lynxeds.com/species/spanish-sparrow-passer-hispaniolensis Media related to the Spanish sparrow] at the Internet Bird Collection
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110322152529/http://www.arkive.org/spanish-sparrow/passer-hispaniolensis/ Spanish sparrow] at [[ARKive]]

{{Passeridae}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q466200}}

[[Category:Passer|Spanish sparrow]]
[[Category:Birds of Southern Europe]]
[[Category:Birds of Central Asia]]
[[Category:Birds of West Asia]]
[[Category:Birds of Macaronesia]]
[[Category:Birds of North Africa]]
[[Category:Fauna of the Iberian Peninsula]]
[[Category:Birds described in 1820|Spanish sparrow]]