A rosefinch of high elevations on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau and nearby regions. It searches for food on the ground in rocky steppe and alpine meadows.
The male has a wine-colored head and reddish body. The female is gray-brown with streaks and paler underparts.
It forages on the ground alone, in pairs, or in small flocks, feeding mainly on seeds.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.