Cape Sparrow (Passer melanurus)
About the Cape Sparrow
The Cape sparrow (Passer melanurus), or mossie, is a bird of the sparrow family Passeridae found in southern Africa. A medium-sized sparrow at 14–16 centimetres (5.5–6.3 in), it has distinctive plumage, including large pale head stripes in both sexes. Its plumage is mostly grey, brown, and chestnut, and the male has some bold black and white markings on its head and neck. The species inhabits semi-arid savannah, cultivated areas, and towns, and ranges from the central coast of Angola to eastern South Africa and Eswatini. Three subspecies are distinguished in different parts of its range.
No audio on this page yet
We only publish recordings we may use commercially, because this site is supported by ads. xeno-canto lists 131 recordings for this species: 12 CC BY-NC-SA · 5 CC BY-NC-ND. None of them permits commercial use, so there is no player here — the page is kept as a profile so the bird is not missing from the guide.
As soon as someone uploads a freely licensed recording, we mirror it and the player appears here.
Listed as recorded in Namibia, South Africa in the xeno-canto catalogue.
Related species you can hear
- Eurasian Tree SparrowPasser montanusrecording
- House SparrowPasser domesticusrecording
- Italian SparrowPasser italiaerecording
- Kenya SparrowPasser rufocinctusrecording
- Northern Grey-headed SparrowPasser griseusrecording
- Spanish SparrowPasser hispaniolensisrecording
This species has no recording here yet — these relatives do, so you can hear what the family sounds like.