Brown Rat vs Eurasian Tree Sparrow

Rattus norvegicus compared with Passer montanus

Key Differences

• Brown Rat is Least Concern while Eurasian Tree Sparrow is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Brown Rat	Eurasian Tree Sparrow
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Rodentia (Rodents)	Passeriformes (Songbirds)
Family	Muridae (Mice & Rats)	Passeridae
Genus	Rattus	Passer
Species	Rattus norvegicus	Passer montanus

Evolutionary Relationship

Brown Rat and Eurasian Tree Sparrow share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Chordata. (Chordates)

Conservation Status

Brown Rat

LC — Least Concern

Eurasian Tree Sparrow

EN — Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Brown Rat	Eurasian Tree Sparrow
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Brown Rat

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 10 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (11 countries), Asia (15 countries), Europe (41 countries), North America (16 countries), Oceania and the Pacific (10 countries), and South America (10 countries).

Eurasian Tree Sparrow

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 6 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore), Europe (7 countries), North America (Canada, United States), and Oceania and the Pacific (Australia, Marshall Islands). Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Brown Rat

Brown Rat (Rattus norvegicus) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

Eurasian Tree Sparrow

Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus) is classified as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List. At high risk of extinction in the wild, with significant population decline and ongoing threats to survival.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 13 countries:

🇦🇺 Australia 🇧🇪 Belgium 🇨🇦 Canada 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇱🇺 Luxembourg 🇲🇭 Marshall Islands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇭 Philippines 🇷🇺 Russia 🇸🇬 Singapore 🇪🇸 Spain 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇺🇸 United States