African Firefinch
Lagonosticta rubricata (Lichtenstein, 1823)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Male African Firefinch Lagonosticta rubricata at Cumberland Nature Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal. Cropped version of
Alandmanson · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The African firefinch (Lagonosticta rubricata), also called the blue-billed firefinch, is a common species of estrildid finch found in many parts of Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 5,400,000 km2 (2,100,000 mi2).
Wikipedia contributors, African firefinch; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T06:07:30.060017+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Lagonosticta rubricata (Lichtenstein, 1823)
- Name authority
- (Lichtenstein, 1823)
- Common name
- African Firefinch
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Estrildidae
- Genus
- Lagonosticta
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyEstrildidae Bonaparte, 1850
- genusLagonosticta Cabanis, 1851
- speciesLagonosticta rubricata (Lichtenstein, 1823)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Lagonosticta. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Black-throated FirefinchLagonosticta larvata (Rüppell, 1840) | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Mali FirefinchLagonosticta virata Bates, 1932 | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Bar-breasted FirefinchLagonosticta rufopicta (Fraser, 1843) | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Landana FirefinchLagonosticta landanae Sharpe, 1890 | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Brown FirefinchLagonosticta nitidula Hartlaub, 1886 | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-bellied FirefinchLagonosticta rara (Antinori, 1864) | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Jameson's FirefinchLagonosticta rhodopareia (Heuglin, 1868) | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Rock Firefinch.Lagonosticta sanguinodorsalis Payne, 1998 | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Red-billed FirefinchLagonosticta senegala (Linnaeus, 1766) | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Chad FirefinchLagonosticta umbrinodorsalis Reichenow, 1910 | EstrildidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=560649 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3RXP9. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.