Russet Sparrow

The russet sparrow, also called the cinnamon or cinnamon tree sparrow, is a chunky little seed-eating sparrow 14–15 cm long and 18–22.5 g, with a thick bill and warm rufous plumage above and grey below. It is sexually dimorphic, with the plumage of both sexes patterned like the corresponding sex of the house sparrow, and has a chestnut iris. Three subspecies are recognised, differing chiefly in the yellowness of the underparts; rutilans and intensior breed in parts of eastern Asia, usually in light woodland, and cinnamomeus breeds in the Himalaya, where it is usually associated with terrace cultivation (Wikipedia, general species account).

It is known well enough in the Himalaya to have a distinct name in some languages, and is depicted in Japanese art. In the southern part of its range it prefers higher altitudes, but in the north it breeds by the sea. It feeds mainly on the seeds of herbs and grains, but also eats berries and insects, particularly in the breeding season, and while breeding it is not social, its nests being dispersed. Its vocalisations are sweet, musical chirps that strung together form a song. The typical clutch is five or six whitish eggs, and both sexes incubate and feed the young (Wikipedia, general species account).