The house sparrow (Passer domesticus) is one of the most widespread, common, and familiar birds. Native to the Palearctic, it now occurs nearly worldwide through human introduction. A highly adaptable species, it can be found in fields, open scrubland, farms, and urban and suburban settings, including parks, gardens, cemeteries, campuses, fairgrounds, and even around bustling metropolises. They tend to avoid dense forests and woodlands and extreme deserts. Looking at my eBird data, I have documented the species 160 times since 2021 (and that’s the number of lists I have submitted that contains the house sparrow, not the number of individual birds). The house sparrow feeds on seeds and grains, but is an opportunistic feeder and will also gladly take human refuse, such as bread crumbs, dropped popcorn, and other grain-based goodies. They will also eat invertebrates, especially when breeding. Such a common and familiar species, it is surprising it took this long to get a figure from a major company. In recent years, Mojö Fun has probably been my least favorite of the ‘big’ companies, but they really wowed the toy animal community in 2025 when they announced their new Enthusiasts Garden Bird Collection, including today’s house sparrow!
Mojö’s house sparrow measures approximately 9.0 cm in body length for a scale of 1:1.6-1:2.
The bird is sculpted resting on a base resembling the top of a wooden fence pole, with its head cocked slightly to the right. We were all amazed by the promo pics of the Garden Birds but seeing them in-hand, pics don’t do the figures justice! The detail is exquisite! Because the bird is permanently affixed to a base (something that several collectors don’t like, but I don’t mind), it allows for the feet to be sculpted in proportion with the rest of the body.
Like many birds, the house sparrow is sexually dimorphic, and our bird today represents a mature male in breeding plumage. I’ll let the pics speak for themselves, but I wanted to draw attention to the cleanly-painted pink legs with grey talons!
The announcement of Mojö’s Garden Birds Collection was the highlight for many collectors in 2025. Having received three of them already, I can say that the hype is very well deserved. Today’s house sparrow, and others, come highly recommended to collectors, especially collectors of interesting taxa. Their size makes them relatively compatible with Safari’s Wings of the World and Papo’s birds, and would complement those models nicely on a shelf!
Here is a comparison with passerines by other brands. From left to right: Safari Ltd. TOOB yellow warbler; Science & Nature Australian magpie (version 2); Mojö Fun house sparrow; Papo European robin; Safari Ltd. WoW northern mockingbird; Yowie Group palila; Kaiyodo Pallas’s rosefinch:
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Would you please compare this bird with Papo? for example Papo Robin
I added a pic at the bottom comparing it with passerines from other companies.
Thanks alot. Interesting topic and nice comparison at the end 🌸 Maybe it could be more attractive without base.
Needs more black on the throat/chest but an otherwise fantastic figure of a bird that I generally loath. I’ll be getting one!