House sparrows are decreasing alarmingly in Britain, with 64 per cent lost in the last 25 years.

Physical description
House sparrows have a wingspan of 14-16cm and weigh 27-39g. They have a body length of 15cm. Male house sparrows have streaked brown plumage with pale cheeks, a grey crown and black bib. The females are paler and without the patterned head.

Distribution
House sparrows are distributed across Europe, Africa and Asia. They have been introduced to North and South America, South Africa and parts of Australasia.

Habitat
They are typically found near human habituation, including city centres, parks, gardens, farms and fields.

Diet
House sparrows feed mainly on seeds, but will also eat other vegetable matter and insects.

Behaviour
Sparrows are social and gregarious, and are often found in small flocks. Communal roosts are important for them. They feed on the ground and in vegetation, but will also chase flying insects in flight.

Reproduction
House sparrows breed in spring and summer and the untidy nest of grass and straw is generally built inside buildings or other holes, and sometimes free-standing in bushes. The clutch of 3-5 eggs are incubated by both parents for 12-14 days and the chicks fledge after 15 days.

Conservation status
House sparrows are not considered to be globally threatened. Despite recent declines in their populations, there are probably still more than 3,000,000 pairs breeding.

Voice
They emit a series of chirps and twitters, strung together as a rudimentary song.