Rock Sparrow
Petronia petronia

The rock sparrow or rock petronia is a small passerine bird in the sparrow family Passeridae. It is the only species in the genus Petronia. It breeds on barren rocky hills from Madeira and the Canary Islands east through the Iberian Peninsula and western north Africa, across southern Europe and through southwestern and central Asia to Mongolia and the north and west of China. It is resident in the west of its range, but some Asian birds may migrate to more southerly areas, or move to lower altitudes in mountains, in winter. Source
Where it is now
In the last 8 weeks this bird was recorded 1,034 times across 14 areas (each area is a 5 degree square).
See the Rock Sparrow on the live map
Arrival dates
The week it was first heard regularly in each region, after at least six weeks away. Dates differ from south to north, so a region has a range.
| Region | First arrival | Last arrival | Typical peak | Areas |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | 13 April 2026 | 1 June 2026 | 15 June 2026 | 3 |
| Africa | 2 February 2026 | 2 February 2026 | 9 February 2026 | 1 |
Figures are effort corrected and come from automatic sound identification, which makes mistakes. How this is measured and how it compares with human observers.