page_title: Fox sparrow
section_title: Taxonomy
hierarchical_section_title: Fox sparrow / Taxonomy
caption_attribution_description: English: Sooty Fox Sparrow in Sacramento, California
context_page_description: The fox sparrow is a large American sparrow. It is the only member of the genus Passerella, although some authors split the species into four.
context_section_description: More specific information regarding plumage is available in the accounts for the various taxa.
  Red fox sparrow, P. i. iliaca (Merrem, 1786) – this taxon breeds in the taiga of Canada and Alaska and winters in central and eastern North America. This is the brightest colored group.
  sooty fox sparrow, P. i. unalaschcensis (Gmelin, JF, 1789) – this taxon breeds along the Pacific coast of North America from the Aleutian Islands south to northwestern Washington, and winters from southeastern Alaska south to northern Baja California. It is browner and darker than the red fox sparrow.
  slate-colored fox sparrow, P. i. schistacea Baird, SF, 1858 – this taxon breeds in interior western North America and winters to the south and west. It has a gray head and mantle, brown wings, brown breast streaks, and a russet tail.
  thick-billed fox sparrow, P. i. megarhyncha Baird, SF, 1858 – this taxon is mostly restricted to California and Oregon. This group is similar in coloration to the slate-colored fox sparrow, but features a particularly thick bill, as its name would suggest.
caption: Sooty Fox Sparrow. Sacramento, California.
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