Sudan Golden Sparrow at the edge of the Western Palearctic

Two Sudan Golden Sparrows (Passer luteus) seen on 12 January 2013 in a dense tree with 50 Desert Sparrows (Passer simplex) at a well 17 km SW of Aousserd, Oued Dahab region on the track to the barrage (Boulariah) where the oued is still flooded by Thomas Pettersson and Krister Mild. 

Thomas kindly shared with us the photos taken by his colleague Krister. He also provided the following description and GPS coordinates:

Included are 5 photos of the female Sudan Golden Sparrow, 17 km SW of Awserd (GPS: N 22.45718°, W 14.47373°) on 12 January 2013.

This (adult) female is identified by yellowish underparts and sides of head, pale-tipped median and greater coverts, creating two narrow whitish wing-bars, and pale buffish edges to the secondaries, creating a pale panel along the closed wing. In direct comparison with Desert Sparrow it is somewhat smaller. We didn’t manage to get any photos of the adult male, since it was hiding inside the tree most of the time.

Sudan Golden Sparrows (Passer luteus), 17 km SW of Aousserd (© Krister Mild)

Sudan Golden Sparrows (Passer luteus), 17 km SW of Aousserd (© Krister Mild)

Sudan Golden Sparrows (Passer luteus), 17 km SW of Aousserd (© Krister Mild)

Sudan Golden Sparrows (Passer luteus), 17 km SW of Awserd (© Krister Mild)

Habitat of the Sudan Golden Sparrows (Passer luteus), 17 km SW of Awserd (© Krister Mild)

It should be noted that this is the second Moroccan record ever of the Sudan Golden Sparrow. The first record was also obtained at Aousserd on 21 April 2009 and involved 2 males and 5 females/juveniles by Pieter Vantieghem et al. 

Sudan Golden Sparrows at Aousserd on 21 April 2009 (© Pieter Vantieghem)

Many thanks to Thomas Pettersson and Krister Mild.