Order passeriformes family Alaudidae
Larks in Europe are known for their elaborate calls, which are more complex than most other birds in the region. They are often seen singing from high perches, producing melodious sounds that many people find appealing. This distinctive singing ability has earned larks a significant place in literature and music, particularly the Skylark in northern Europe and the Crested Lark and Calandra Lark in southern Europe.
These species inhabit open countryside and build their nests on the ground, typically forming cup-shaped structures from dead grass. The females are primarily responsible for nest building, incubation, and brooding, while both parents feed the young. Like many ground-dwelling birds, most lark species possess long hind claws, which are believed to help provide stability while they are standing.
Most larks have streaked brown plumage, with some exhibiting bold markings in black or white. Their muted appearance offers effective camouflage on the ground, particularly when they are in the nest.
Larks are omnivorous birds that forage on the ground. They eat various foods, including many species of insects, seeds, grasses, leaves, buds, fruits, and flowers, particularly during winter when insects are less available. Some lark species also feed on snails, which they break open on rocks. Many larks use their bills to dig for food.
Some species have heavy bills that are well-suited for cracking open seeds, while others have long, down-curved bills that are particularly effective for digging.
Similar to Pipits. Larks are stouter than pipits. The top of a lark’s bill is curved versus the flatter surface of a pipit’s bill.
1. Genus Alauda
1.1. Skylark also Eurasian Skylark (Alauda arvensis)
Description: Skylarks are small, sparrow-like songbirds characterized by their streaky greyish-brown plumage and distinctive bushy crests. Their upperparts are heavily streaked, and they feature a prominent white supercilia. They have pale faces with darker ear coverts and indistinct, thin, dark mustache and malar stripes. Their short, thick, and sharp bills are pale horn in color.
The Skylarks have darkly streaked upper breasts, while their underparts are pale buff. In flight, they show white sides on their tails and narrow white trailing edges on their wings. The sexes are similar.
- Length – 6.9-7.5 in (17.5-19.0 cm)
- Weight – 1.2-1.5 oz (34.6-42.7 g)
Habitat: Skylarks inhabit open country, especially rough grasslands, heathlands, dunelands, farmlands, and airports. They are absent from any suitable areas with tall trees around.
Conservation: IUCN has listed Skylarks as Least Concern (LC).
Distribution: Skylarks are found throughout Europe and the Palearctic, breeding from the British Isles and Scandinavia to northern Siberia, Kamchatka, and the Kuril Islands. Their range includes northwestern Africa, the Mediterranean, western Asia, the Middle East, Central Asia, north China, Korea, and Japan.
1.2. White-winged Lark (Alauda leucoptera) previously listed as Melanocorypha leucoptera
Description: White-winged Larks have gray-brown upperparts with darker streaks. They have rufous forecrowns, crowns, and ear coverts. In flight, White-winged Larks display a striking contrast between their black outer flight feathers and white inner feathers, highlighted by chestnut wing accents. Their longish, thick bills are pale pinkish.
White-winged Larks have pale underparts. Females have little or no rufous on their heads and breasts, with their breasts being finely streaked.
- Length – Average 7.1 in (18 cm)
- Weight – 1.6-1.7 oz (36-48 g)
Habitat: White-winged Larks inhabit flat, undulating, dry grass steppes and plains. In non-breeding seasons, they occupy a wider range of grassy habitats, including stubble fields.
Conservation: IUCN has listed White-winged Larks as Least Concern (LC).
Distribution: White-winged Larks breed in the steppe region that stretches east from the Volga River through Kazakhstan to Mongolia. During the winter months, they migrate more broadly, particularly in the steppe areas to the north and west of the Black Sea, with Europe comprising over 50% of their global wintering range.
2. Genus Alaudala
2.1. Mediterranean Short-toed Lark (Alaudala rufescens) was named Lesser Short Tailed Lark (Calandrella rufescens)
Description: Mediterranean Short-toed Larks are small birds with grayish-brown upperparts that feature dark streaks. They have pale supercilia and short, finch-like bills. When excited, they can raise their short crests. Their lower parts are white, while their upper breasts display dark streaking. The sexes of these birds are similar in appearance.
- Length – 5.1-5.5 in (13-14 cm)
- Weight – 0.67-0.88 oz (19-25 g)
Habitat: Mediterranean Short-toed Larks inhabit open areas with low shrubs and grasses, predominately bare ground. They are typically found in flat terrain but can also be seen on slopes. These birds can thrive in various soil types, including lime, clay, saline soils, and stony ground. Additionally, they can be spotted in vineyards located in central Spain.
Conservation: IUCN has listed Mediterranean Short-toed Larks as Least Concern (LC).
Distribution: Mediterranean Short-toed Larks breed in Spain, north Africa, and Turkey eastwards across the semi-deserts of central Asia to Mongolia and China.
3. Genus Calandrella
3.1. Greater Short-toed Lark (Calandrella brachydactyla)
Description: Greater Short-toed Larks are small, short-billed, pale larks with dark-streaked grayish-brown upperparts and dark patches on their necks and sides. They have a broad, pale supercilia, short tails, and long tertials. Some birds in the west of the range have rufous crowns.
Greater Short-toed Larks have whitish necks and underparts with faint buff tinges on the sides of their breasts, and they have unusually straight hind claws. Their undertails are black, and their legs are pale brownish flesh to light brown. The sexes are similar.
- Length – 5.5-5.9 in (14-15 cm)
- Weight – 0.56-0.85 oz (16-24 g)
Similar to Mediterranean Short-toed Larks. Greater Short-toed Larks have longer bills than Mediterranean Short-toed Larks, which have stubbier bills.
Habitat: Greater Short-toed Larks breed in fallow lands across the Mediterranean Basin, and they can also be found in dry areas with sparse low vegetation, including tobacco fields and olive groves.
Conservation: IUCN has listed Greater Short-toed Larks as Least Concern (LC).
Distribution: Greater Short-toed Larks breed in southern Europe, north-west Africa, and across the Palearctic, from Turkey and southern Russia to Mongolia.
4. Genus Chersophilus
4.1. Dupont’s Lark (Chersophilus duponti)
Description: Dupont’s Larks have long legs and necks, slender, down-curved bills, and small heads. Their plumage is primarily grayish-brown on the back with dense dark streaks. They feature thin pale median crown stripes, buff-white supercilia, and eye rings, as well as thin dark malar stripes. Their underparts are whitish with streaky breasts. Their legs are dull pinkish-brown, and both sexes have a similar appearance.
- Length – 6.7-7.1 in (17-18 cm)
- Weight – 1.1-1.7 oz (32-47 g)
Habitat: Dupont’s Larks inhabit natural steppes with flat or rolling terrain. They are also abundant in non-degraded wormwood and mixed shrub vegetation patches, thriving on hard or pebbly soils while avoiding sandy areas.
Conservation: The IUCN has classified Dupont’s Lark as Vulnerable (VU) due to habitat fragmentation and degradation caused by overgrazing, undergrazing, and agricultural development. Reforestation projects can also result in the loss of suitable habitat. Additionally, infrastructure development, particularly the construction of wind farms in Spain, has led to further habitat fragmentation.
Distribution: Dupont’s Larks are non-migratory residents that breed across much of northern Africa, from Algeria to Egypt, as well as in Spain.
5. Genus Eremophila
5.1. Shore Lark (Eremophila alpestris flava)
Description: Shore Larks, a sub-species of the Horned Larks in North America, are small, stout birds resembling sparrows with long bodies. These larks are quite distinctive compared to most others, featuring black chests, ear markings, and tiny black “horns.” Their faces and necks can range in color from white to yellow. The upper parts of the birds are primarily brown-grey, while their lower parts can vary from cinnamon to white.
Their bills are slender and can vary in color from dark neutral gray to black, while their feet and legs are also black. The sexes are similar, but males are larger and darker than females. Additionally, females do not have “horns.”
- Length – 6.3-7.9 in (16-20 cm)
- Weight – 1.0-1.4 oz (28-40 g)
Similar to:
- American Pipits. Juvenile Shore Larks are similar to American Pipits.
- Chestnut-collared Longspurs. Shore Larks have black stripes on their chins; Chestnut-collared Longspurs do not.
- Temminck’s Larks. Shore Larks have yellow in their face patterns; Temminck’s Larks have black and yellow face patterns.
Habitat: Shore Larks are commonly found on open ground, particularly on seashore flats during winter. They can also be spotted in farmlands, prairies, deserts, golf courses, and airports.
Conservation: IUCN has listed Shore Larks as Least Concern (LC).
Distribution: Shore Larks breed in Found in northern Europe and northern Asia
6. Genus Galerida
6.1. Crested Lark (Galerida cristata)
Description: Crested Larks display distinct, longer, and spikier crests that become more noticeable during territorial displays, courtship, and singing. They have buff-white supercilia, eye rings, dark eyestripes, mustache, and malar stripes. They have grayish-brown streaky upper parts with short tails. They have longer bills with straighter lower mandibles.
Crested Larks have whitish underparts and dark-streaked upper chests, featuring distinct reddish-colored underwings visible during flight. The sexes are alike.
- Length – 6.7-7.4 in (17-19.0 cm)
- Weight – 1.2-1.8 oz (35-50 g)
Similar to:
- Malabar Larks. Crested Larks have grayish-brown upperparts. Malabar Larks have reddish-brown upperparts.
- Thekla’s Larks. Thekla’s Larks’ bills are shorter and less decurved-looking bill (both mandibles convex), shorter, and have less spiky crests. In flight, Thekla’s Larks’ underwings are gray. Crested Larks’ underwings are reddish.
Habitat: Crested Larks are found in dry areas with scarce vegetation, especially agricultural land on roadsides and in similar open, dry places. They also include open country and secondarily human-modified landscapes.
Conservation: IUCN has listed Crested Larks as Least Concern (LC).
Distribution: Crested Larks are found across a wide range, extending into Korea from the Iberian Peninsula and temperate Europe to the Middle East, India, and central Asia. They inhabit areas around the Sahara Desert and the River Nile in Africa, with small populations in Kenya, Ghana, the Central African Republic, and near the Algeria-Libya border.
6.2. Thekla’s Lark (Galerida theklae)
Description: Thekla’s Larks are medium-sized birds with long, spiky crests. They have buff-white supercilia, eye rings, dark eye steaks, and mustache and malar stripes. Their upperparts are streaked grayish-brown, while the underparts are whitish with heavily streaked upper breasts. Males and females have similar appearances.
- Length – 5.9-6.7 in (15-17 cm)
- Weight – 1.06-1.4 oz (30-40 g)
Habitat: Thekla’s Larks inhabit hilly and broken landscapes with scrub but always with plenty of bare ground or short grass, olive and almond groves, and vineyards.
Conservation: IUCN has listed Thekla’s Larks as Least Concern (LC).
Distribution: Thekla’s Larks are found in France, Spain, Portugal, Algeria, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Libya, Morocco, Somalia, Tunisia, and Western Sahara.
7. Genus Lullula
7.1. Wood Lark also Woodlark (Lullula arborea)
Description: Wood Larks are medium-sized birds recognized for their short, upright crests. They have prominent supercilia that meet at the nape of their necks, along with rufous ear coverts that have white borders and distinct moustachial streaks. Their bills are slender and brown, while their upperparts are largely streaky brown. One of their most distinguishing features is the prominent black-and-white markings at the bends of their wings. While these markings are a key identifying characteristic, they can be difficult to spot.
Wood Larks have pale underparts with dark streaks on their breasts. They have short tails with white corners that are visible in flight. Their legs are a pinkish-brown color. The sexes are similar, but females are smaller than males.
- Length – 5.3-5.9 in (13.5-15 cm)
- Weight – 0.8-1.24 oz (23-35 g)
Habitat: Wood Larks thrive in heathlands and open spaces with few trees, favoring clearings in pine forests and areas with newly planted pine saplings.
Conservation: IUCN has listed Wood Larks as Least Concern (LC).
Distribution: Wood Larks live in many parts of Europe, the Middle East, western Asia, and the mountainous areas of North Africa. In the western regions, they usually stay in one place and do not migrate. In contrast, the populations in the east move south during the winter months.
8. Genus Melanocorypha
8.1. Calandra Lark (Melanocorypha calandra)
Description: Calandra Larks are large birds characterized by pale supercilia, white eye rings, and deeply based bills. Their upper parts are primarily streaked greyish-brown. They exhibit dark underwings with white trailing edges on their upper wings in flight, which are key identifying features.
Calandra larks have whitish underparts featuring a distinctive black patch on the sides of their upper breasts, which are also black-spotted and streaked. They display buffy tones on their rear flanks and have pinkish legs. The males and females look similar, but females are smaller and have a smaller black patch on the sides of their upper breasts.
- Length – 7.1-7.9 in (18-20 cm)
- Weight – 1.9-2.6 oz (54-73 g)
Habitat: Calandra Larks favors open landscapes such as cultivated fields and steppe areas with dense grass coverage, primarily in extensive dry cereal farming.
Conservation: IUCN has listed Calandra Larks as Least Concern (LC).
Distribution: Calandra larks live in warm, temperate areas around the Mediterranean. They can be found in Spain, France, Turkey, northern Iran, and southern Russia. In Russia, these larks migrate more during the winter and travel as far south as northern Africa (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia).
Conclusion
Larks in Europe play an important role in the ecosystem. They help control insect populations and spread seeds. Whilst these Larks are not threatened with imminent extinction, they are under threat due to habitat loss, farming practices, wind farms, and climate change. By preserving their habitats and encouraging sustainable farming, we can help these wonderful songsters survive.
