Horned Lark
Eremophila alpestris
Summary 5
The horned lark (Eremophila alpestris), called the shore lark in Europe, is a species of lark in the Alaudidae family found across the northern hemisphere.
Subspecies 6
Forty-two subspecies are recognized:
Description 6
Unlike most other larks, this is a distinctive-looking species on the ground, mainly brown-grey above and pale below, with a striking black and yellow face pattern. Except for the central feathers, the tail is mostly black, contrasting with the paler body; this contrast is especially noticeable when the bird is in flight. The summer male has black "horns", which give this species its American name. North America has a number of races distinguished by the face pattern and back colour of males, especially in summer. The southern European mountain race E. a. penicillata is greyer above, and the yellow of the face pattern is replaced with white.
Measurements:
Vocalizations are high-pitched, lisping or tinkling, and weak. The song, given in flight as is common among larks, consists of a few chips followed by a warbling, ascending trill.
Distribution and habitat 6
The horned lark breeds across much of North America from the high Arctic south to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, northernmost Europe and Asia and in the mountains of southeast Europe. There is also an isolated population on a plateau in Colombia. It is mainly resident in the south of its range, but northern populations of this passerinebird are migratory, moving further south in winter.
This is a bird of open ground. In Eurasia it breeds above the tree line in mountains and the far north. In most of Europe, it is most often seen on seashore flats in winter, leading to the European name. In the UK it is found as a winter stopover along the coasts and in eastern England. In North America, where there are no other larks to compete with, it is also found on farmland, on prairies, in deserts, on golf courses and airports.
Status and conservation 6
Horned Lark populations are declining according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey. In 2016, the Partners in Flight Landbird Conservation Plan detailed the Horned Lark as a “Common Bird in Steep Decline,” but the Horned Lark as of 2016 is not on the State of North America’s Birds’ Watch List. This species’ decline could be contributed to the loss of habitat due to agricultural pesticides, the disturbed sites the birds prefer reverting back to forested lands through reforestation efforts, urbanization and human encroachment as well as collisions with wind turbines. In the open areas of western North America, horned larks are among the bird species most often killed by wind turbines. In 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed the subspecies streaked horned lark as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.
Sources and Credits
- (c) Bill Carrell, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Bill Carrell
- (c) Sean Cozart, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Sean Cozart
- (c) P Holroyd, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by P Holroyd
- (c) Alison Sheehey, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Alison Sheehey, https://www.flickr.com/photos/natureali/33643368873/
- Adapted by Desmon M Dunn from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eremophila_alpestris
- (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horned_lark
