The 14 to 16 centimetre long House Sparrow is abundant but not universally common; in many hilly districts it is scarce. → Red finches can be a welcome addition to bird feeders, but identifying house finches and purple finches can be a challenge even for experienced birders. Both are similar in size and coloring. So how can we tell them apart? Their breeding habits are not unlike that of Cutthroats, however in my opinion they are more dependable and therefore easier to breed successfully than Cutthroats. An easy ID marker for the adult male House Finch is the red or orange color that is on the head/face. The House Finch is a medium-sized finch with a thick bill. Purple Finch es aren’t purple, and House Finch es don’t stick to houses. The House Finch is a recent introduction from western into eastern North America (and Hawaii), but it has received a warmer reception than other arrivals like the European Starling and House Sparrow. Sparrows can be any number of shades of brown and gray, with males displaying brown streaking on their chests. Many people mistake a House Finch for a Purple Finch. This question could have been written by my older son, who never really got the hang of it, although he was very good at differentiating them. Finches Finches are small birds with forked or notched tails, moderately pointed wings, rounded or elongated bodies and round heads, with more or less triangular bills. The Lark Sparrow is a small bird with distinctive head markings with white or pale brown stripe on the crown bordered by chestnut brown. House Sparrows’ color pattern is generally darker than that of House Finches, with deeper browns and more black in the back and wings. There are a great many species of both sparrows and finches, but not all of them spend time around humans. Both species have attractive brown and red plumage, but they look so similar that careful observation and practice is necessary to … Both male and female House Finches have significant brown streaking on their flanks and belly compared to House Sparrows and other similar finch species like the Purple Finch or Cassin’s Finch . It may have small amounts of reddish wash in its otherwise brownish cheek, hindcrown, nape,and streaked back. It is a congenial, cheerful singer from urban areas to desert plateaus. The Red Headed Finch is a large finch, as large as a Java Sparrow, and a first cousin of the more common Cutthroat Finch.They originate in Africa and have long been regarded as a popular, though seldom seen cage bird. It’s just that he always called the finches “sparrows” and vice versa. Many male house finches are pale red, and those are even easier to recognize. The males can be distinguished by the shades of color. A red and brown bird at your feeder might be either one throughout much of the United States. New York pet shop owners, who had been selling the finches illegally, released their birds in 1940 to escape prosecution; the finches survived, and began to colonize the New York suburbs. That’s partly due to the cheerful red head and breast of males, and to the bird’s long, twittering song, which can now be heard in most of the neighborhoods of the continent. Both male and female finches may have streaking. First, consult a map. But that’s only the start of the confusion around these two doppelgangers. Male purple finches are wine red, or purple-red, compared to the house finch’s fire engine red. If you’re seeing these small birds near agricultural areas, suburbs or cities frequently, they likely are the ones that fit into the taxonomic family Passeridae, or house sparrow, or the family Fringillidae, or house finch. There are a great many species of both sparrows and finches, but not all of them spend time around humans. What Sparrow-sized Finch Has a Red Head, Red Cheek, Bright Red Chest, Brown Side Streaks and Red Spot Above the Tail? The male has a red forehead, throat, eyebrow, rump and varying amounts of red in the breast. But that’s only the start of the confusion around these two doppelgangers. The House Sparrow, though, is an introduced species and not protected under federal law. The House finch is the most widespread of Oregon's "red finches."