Rufous-winged Sparrow
Rufous-winged Sparrow has no long-term trend on record.
About the Rufous-winged Sparrow
The Rufous-winged Sparrow (Peucaea carpalis) is a North American member of the New World Sparrows (Passerellidae). In this analysis it is grouped with the arid-land birds.
- Size
- 4.5–7.5 in long (12–19 cm) — a small songbird (typical for the family)
- Habitat
- Deserts, dry scrub and brushland of the Southwest.
- Diet
- Seeds, insects and cactus fruit of arid-land plants.
- Range
- Recorded on 13 Breeding Bird Survey routes across 1 state, most concentrated in the Sierra Madre Occidental.
- Family
- Passerellidae · Arid-land birds
Notable Rufous-winged Sparrow Trends
No notable trend signals for Rufous-winged Sparrow. See the full index history below.
Rufous-winged Sparrow Population Forecast
If the recent trend holds, Rufous-winged Sparrow is projected to stay roughly flat through 2029, near 0.02 (95% range 0.01–0.03). A 5-year backtest shows a typical error of ±127.9%, with 60% of held-out values landing inside the 95% band.
| Year | Projected index | 95% low | 95% high |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 0.01 | 0.00 | 0.03 |
| 2026 | 0.01 | 0.00 | 0.03 |
| 2027 | 0.01 | 0.00 | 0.03 |
| 2028 | 0.02 | 0.01 | 0.03 |
| 2029 | 0.02 | 0.01 | 0.03 |
Where the Rufous-winged Sparrow Is Detected
BBS routes recording Rufous-winged Sparrow, sized by most recent count.
Rufous-winged Sparrow Population Trend by State
| Arizona | +612% | 1974 | 13 |
Rufous-winged Sparrow Population Trend by Region
Bird Conservation Regions are the ecological unit for trends.
| Sierra Madre Occidental | +305% | 1974 | 7 |
Rufous-winged Sparrow Conservation Status
Rufous-winged Sparrow is tracked across BBS survey routes; no formal conservation-status flag is recorded here.
Source: USGS North American Breeding Bird Survey, retrieved 2026-05-22. Trend is a route-weighted relative-abundance index, not an absolute population.