Pale Rockfinch
Carpospiza brachydactyla (Bonaparte, 1850)
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.
Open encyclopedia reference
The pale rockfinch or pale rock sparrow (Carpospiza brachydactyla) is a small sparrow found in the Middle East and Central Asia. It is the only member of the genus Carpospiza. Some authorities include it in the genus Petronia. Others have placed it in the finch family due to some similarities in behaviour and form, but the anatomy of its tongue exhibits characteristic sparrow features.
The range of pale rockfinch extends from eastern Turkey to Afghanistan, and south into the Arabian Peninsula and northern Africa as far as Ethiopia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry shrubland and temperate grassland.
The breeding pattern of the pale rock sparrow is associated with specific aspects of habitat. Presence of this species is associated with temperature, grasshopper and beetle abundance, whereas density is associated with available habitat. Since available habitat plays a role on the density of pale rockfinches, rapidly growing villages and cultivation are a threat to the population.
Wikipedia contributors, Pale rockfinch; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T04:07:30.147065+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Carpospiza brachydactyla (Bonaparte, 1850)
- Name authority
- (Bonaparte, 1850)
- Common name
- Pale Rockfinch
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Passeridae
- Genus
- Carpospiza
- 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
- familyPasseridae Rafinesque, 1815
- genusCarpospiza Von J. W. Muller, 1854
- speciesCarpospiza brachydactyla (Bonaparte, 1850)
Close classified relatives
No other member of this genus is present in the selected snapshot.
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=559082 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. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
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:RGPF. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.