Birds and Birding's Guide to:

Watching THE SPARROW-LIKE BIRDS

THE SONG BIRDS

THE LARKS

Skylarks

Turning now to the Old World for the remainder of this family, we may well commence our account with its most celebrated members, the Skylarks (Alauda), of which there are several species and probably many subspecies. They have a rather short though slender bill, the nostrils covered by plumelets, rather long, pointed wings in which there are ten primaries, the outer being minute, a moderately long, slightly forked tail, and a very long, nearly straight hind claw. In coloration the plumage is dark brown above, each feather broadly edged with fulvous and pale fulvous and whitish beneath, the cheeks and throat slightly and the breast broadly streaked with black; their length approximates seven inches. The best-known species, and the one about which centers so much of classic prose and poetry, is the Skylark par excellence (A. arvensis), a common and familiar bird throughout much of Europe and Asia. It is found in open places, such as pastures, commons, downs, and mountain slopes, but more especially in cultivated areas, having greatly increased in numbers and range with the spread of agricultural improvement; in fact, we are told that it is probably the most abundant bird in western Europe. From early spring until midsummer they are spread here and there throughout this vast area engaged in rearing their young, of which there are usually several broods, but by September they commence to congregate in flocks, often of enormous numbers, and to range about the country in search of food. In the more northern portions of their habitat they appear to be entirely migratory, departing for the south on the advent of severe weather; but in Great Britain and the Continent they are not wholly so, for while the majority are absent in the coldest weather, many, evidently northern birds, may be found in various situations. During these fall migrations the birds often come, as on the east coast of Scotland and England, in a continuous stream for several days at a time until the numbers are simply incalculable. At such times they are snared and netted by thousands and even hundreds of thousands for food, a massacre of the innocents that would seem to threaten them with extermination, though Mr. Newton charitably extenuates the slaughter by pointing out that if not thus held in check, many would die of starvation or be lost at sea while seeking new fields, for the food supply could not hold out for such vast hordes. The nest is the usual slight structure of straws and grass in a grain field or meadow. At this time the birds are quite fearless, allowing a near approach before taking flight, and depending much upon the protective coloration for concealment. Their eggs, usually three to five in number, are grayish white marked with brown, drab, and lavender. The food of the Skylark consists principally of the seeds of grain and wild plants, and in summer such insects as they can readily procure in cultivated fields.

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