Skylark
The skylark (Alauda arvensis) is a small bird native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa, known for its remarkable song, particularly sung by males. This species typically inhabits open landscapes such as grasslands, shrublands, and marshes. Skylarks are distinctive for their pleasant, melodious calls, which contribute to their cultural significance, inspiring poets and songwriters. Males and females share similar plumage, characterized by a pale underside and brown-barred back, with males being slightly larger.
Breeding occurs primarily in March and April, with nesting continuing until July. The female lays a clutch of cream-colored eggs in a ground nest, while both parents play a role in feeding the chicks, which fledge after about three weeks. Skylarks have a varied diet, consuming insects during the warmer months and grasses and seeds in winter. While they face natural threats from predators like sparrowhawks and human-induced dangers such as habitat destruction, skylarks can live up to six years on average. These birds are often solitary but become social during winter months, feeding in groups.
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Skylark
The skylark is a species of bird native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa. They mainly reside in areas of open country such as shrublands, steppes, grasslands, and marshes. The skylark is most notable for the distinctive and beautiful song made by male skylarks.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Alaudidae
Genus: Alauda
Species: Arvensis
Poets and songwriters have written about the skylark and its pleasant warbling song. It is among the most pleasant songs in this class of the animal kingdom. The skylark is frequently heard in open, treeless areas of grassy hillsides, pastures, moorlands, dunes, and marshes near estuaries. An estuary is an area where a freshwater river flows into a body of saltwater. The skylark sings nearly all year long and is quiet only when it is foggy and during its summer molting season when it sheds its plumage. A common sound in the areas inhabited by skylarks is of its singing while it builds its nest or incubates its eggs.
Males and females have identical plumage, however males tend to be larger than females. Pale plumage covers the underside of the skylark, and its back, wings, and head are decorated with tan, brown-barred plumage. Its small head carries a tuft of feathers on its top. The full-grown skylark is about seven inches (18 centimeters) long and weighs close to one ounce (28 grams). Its wingspan is between 12 and 14 inches (30 and 35 centimeters) long.
The skylark lives alone most of the year. It typically breeds in March and April and nests through the month of July. When it is in its winter location and not breeding, the skylark is a sociable bird which lives near others of its species and feeds with them at the same sites.
During the spring and summer, the skylark eats caterpillars, millipedes, earthworms, and insects. Fall and winter bring a change in the bird's diet when it eats grass, corn, and sugar beets. Throughout the year, the bird may also consume parts of some plants and weeds, especially chickweed and clover.
The greatest natural threat to the skylark is sparrowhawks, which can attack with surprise and speed. Although the skylark is legally protected in many areas, hunters can pose a threat in locations where protection laws do not exist. Another threat is increased habitat destruction. A skylark that escapes and survives these threats may live an average five to six years; some have lived as long as eight years.
Breeding occurs mainly in March and April, but may last until July. The male guards his territory by singing, which alerts other skylarks to stay away from his area. He courts the female by singing as he rises and hovers up to 1,000 feet (300 meters) above the ground and then dives toward the earth and lands. He continues singing while the female builds the nest from roots and grass in a shallow hollow in the ground. She then lays a clutch, or batch, of three to five, cream colored eggs with brown spots. Only the female incubates the eggs for eleven days before they hatch. Both parents feed the chicks until they are ready to fly from the nest after three weeks. The young are able to mate one year later. A female may lay two to three clutches between late spring and early summer.
Similar species:
- White-winged lark (Alauda leucoptera)
- Raso lark (Alauda razae)
- Oriental skylark (Alauda gulgula)
Bibliography
“Eurasian Skylark.” Audubon, www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/eurasian-skylark. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
“Eurasian Skylark.” Animalia, 2024, animalia.bio/eurasian-skylark. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Hyman, David. “Alauda arvensis Eurasian Skylark.” Animal Diversity Web, 2006, animaldiversity.org/accounts/Alauda‗arvensis. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.