Mediterranean short-toed lark
| Mediterranean short-toed lark | |
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| On Fuerteventura, Canary Islands, Spain | |
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| Species: | A. rufescens
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| Binomial name | |
| Alaudala rufescens (Vieillot, 1820)
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The lesser short-toed lark (Alaudala rufescens) is a small passerine bird. The genus name Alaudula is a diminutive of Alauda, and the specific rufescens is Latin for "reddish", from rufus "red".[2] It is native to Spain, northern Africa, from Western Sahara and Algeria eastwards to Libya and Egypt, the northern Arabian Peninsula, the Middle East and western Asia. It is a common bird with a very wide range and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being of "least concern".[1]
Description
The lesser short-toed lark is similar in size and appearance to the greater short-toed lark (Calandrella brachydactyla) but is generally a duller-looking bird with a more streaked breast. It grows to a length of from 13 to 14 cm (5.1 to 5.5 in) and the sexes are similar. As with C. brachydactyla, the colour varies across the broad range and is not a good distinguishing feature. It is dark-streaked greyish-brown above, and white below. It has a pale supercilium, and a short stubby bill.[3]
Care must be taken to distinguish this species from Calandrella larks, such as the greater short-toed lark, Calandrella brachydactyla. This species lacks the dark neck patches of the greater, and has fine streaking across the breast. The bill and head shape also differ, this species having a shorter, less-conical bill and a more-rounded, smaller head. The song is richer, more varied and imitative than that of its relative.[3]
Ecology
The lesser short-toed lark breeds in Spain, north Africa, also including Turkey eastwards across the semi-deserts of central Asia to Mongolia and China. Many populations, including the Spanish and African breeders, are sedentary (non-migratory), but some Asian birds from the north of the breeding range migrate south in winter. This species is a very rare wanderer to northern and western Europe.[1]
This is a bird of dry open country, preferring even drier and barer soils than greater short-toed lark. It nests on the ground, laying two or three eggs. Its food is seeds and insects, the latter especially in the breeding season.[4]
References
- ^ a b c Template:IUCN
- ^ Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp. 37, 341. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
- ^ a b Mark Beaman; Steve Madge (1998). The Handbook of Bird Identification: For Europe and the Western Palearctic. Christopher Helm. p. 547. ISBN 978-0-7136-3960-5.
- ^ "Lesser Short-toed Lark (Calandrella rufescens)". Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions. Retrieved 17 November 2016.