This slender sparrow gets its name from the rufous patch covering the shoulder (lesser wing coverts), but this field mark is often hidden. Upperparts are gray-brown with dark streaks on the back and buff edges on the coverts and tertials. The tail is fairly long and rounded with paler corners. Underparts are pale gray with buffy flanks. The head is gray with a streaked rusty crown and rusty line behind the eye. The whitish submoustachial stripe is bordered on both edges by dusky moustachial and malar stripes. The lower mandible is more pale than the upper. Juvenile has a streaked brown crown, brown ear coverts, and streaks on the breast and sides.

Length: 13 (cm) Wingspan: 21 (cm)

Voice:

Song is a high thin ascending note, followed by a trill on a lower pitch. Sweet t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t.

Habitat:

Desert scrub with abundant grass cover.

Behavior:

When flushed, usually flies to exposed perch to watch the intruder.

Feeding:

Forages for seeds and insects on the ground and in low vegetation.