Snowfinches are a group of small

passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...

birds in the sparrow family

Passeridae Old World sparrows are a group of small passerine birds forming the family Passeridae. They are also known as true sparrows, a name also used for a particular genus of the family, ''Passer''. They are distinct from both the New World sparrows, i ...

. At one time all eight species were placed in the genus ''

Montifringilla ''Montifringilla'' is a genus of passerine birds in the sparrow family Passeridae. It is one of three genera containing the snowfinches. As the English and scientific names suggest, these are high-altitude species, found in the mountain ranges o ...

'' but they are now divided into three genera: * ''

'' (3 species) ** In Europe, the name snowfinch is sometimes used for the

white-winged snowfinch The white-winged snowfinch (''Montifringilla nivalis''), or snowfinch, is a small passerine bird. Despite its name, it is a sparrow rather than a true finch. Taxonomy In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description o ...

specifically * ''

Pyrgilauda ''Pyrgilauda'' is a genus of passerine birds in the sparrow family Passeridae. They are found in the Himalayas, Tibet and western China. The genus name was introduced by the French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte in 1850. The type species wa ...

'' (4 species) *

White-rumped snowfinch The white-rumped snowfinch (''Onychostruthus taczanowskii'') is a species of passerine bird in the sparrow Sparrow may refer to: Birds * Old World sparrows, family Passeridae * New World sparrows, family Passerellidae * two species in the Pa ...

, ''Onychostruthus taczanowskii''

References

{{Animal common name Birds by common name