CreatureData

African firefinch

Lagonosticta rubricata (Lichtenstein, 1823)

LCLeast Concernsongbirds

The African firefinch (Lagonosticta rubricata) is a species in the family Estrildidae, order Passeriformes. Recorded adults weigh 9.78 g to 10.5 g. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

African firefinch (Lagonosticta rubricata)
Photo: Alandmanson · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the African firefinch

Weight
9.78 g – 10.5 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
Not recorded
Diet
Granivoresrc for Diet
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
woodlandsrc for Habitat
Young per litter or clutch
3.8 – 3.9src for Young per litter or clutch
Lifestyle
Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Sedentarysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the African firefinch live?

Not recorded

What is the African firefinch?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The African firefinch (Lagonosticta rubricata), also called the blue-billed firefinch, is a common species of estrildid finch found in many parts of Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 5,400,000 km2 (2,100,000 mi2).

From the Wikipedia article “African firefinch” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=African_firefinch&oldid=1384407642), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the African firefinch endangered?

The African firefinch is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.

How is the African firefinch classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderPasseriformes
  5. familyEstrildidae
  6. genusLagonosticta
  7. SpeciesLagonosticta rubricata (Lichtenstein, 1823)

Synonyms Fringilla rubricata

Other names and names in other languages (35)
  • AFFIEnglish
  • Blue-billed firefinchEnglish
  • Kaapse RobbinAfrikaans
  • Kaapse VuurvinkieAfrikaans
  • Kaapse Vuurvinkie (Kaapse Robbin)Afrikaans
  • amaranta foscaCatalan
  • amarant tmavýCzech
  • llinos dân AffricaWelsh
  • Mørkerød AmarantDanish
  • DunkelamarantGerman
  • malhela fajrestrildoEsperanto
  • Amaranta ocreSpanish
  • võsa-leekamadiinEstonian
  • tuliruusupeippoFinnish
  • Amarante foncéFrench
  • Amaranthe flambéFrench
  • ružičastoprsa estrildaCroatian
  • sötétvörös amarantHungarian
  • Amaranto africanoItalian
  • カゲロウチョウJapanese
  • afrikinis amarantasLithuanian
  • svartnebbamarantNorwegian Bokmål
  • Donkerrode AmarantDutch
  • rødbrystamarantNorwegian
  • amarantka zmiennaPolish
  • granadeiro-de-bico-azulPortuguese
  • peito-de-fogo-de-bico-azulPortuguese
  • Африканский амарантRussian
  • Тёмно-красный амарантRussian
  • Tamnocrvena amarantaSerbian
  • mörkröd amarantSwedish
  • Afrika AteşispinozuTurkish
  • амарант червонийUkrainian
  • 灰頂火雀Chinese
  • 灰顶火雀Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the African firefinch

Other species in the same genus Lagonosticta.

LC, Least Concern
Rock firefinch (Lagonosticta sanguinodorsalis)

Rock firefinch

Lagonosticta sanguinodorsalis

Estrildidae

CompareAfrican firefinch vs Red-billed firefinchAfrican firefinch vs Brown firefinchAfrican firefinch vs Rock firefinchAfrican firefinch vs Black-faced firefinch

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the African firefinch?

An adult African firefinch weighs 9.78 g – 10.5 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the African firefinch endangered?

The African firefinch is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

What kind of animal is the African firefinch?

The African firefinch (Lagonosticta rubricata) belongs to the family Estrildidae in the order Passeriformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). African firefinch (Lagonosticta rubricata). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/african-firefinch

MLA

“African firefinch (Lagonosticta rubricata).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/african-firefinch.

BibTeX
@misc{african_firefinch_2026,
  title = {African firefinch (Lagonosticta rubricata)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/african-firefinch},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}