256 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



resemblance to the Sky Lark, it is often overlooked. The Crested 

 Lark is a common though local resident in Central and Southern 

 Europe. In Russia it has occurred at St. Petersburg (lat. 60°) 

 in the west, and breeds up to lat. 54° in the east. 



The nest is almost always built upon the ground, either in a 

 little hole scratched out by the parent bird or in the footprint of 

 some animal ; it is somewhat loosely made of dry grass, twitch, 

 rootlets, and a few straws, and is often lined with a few hairs ; 

 but the latter material is not always used, for sometimes it cannot 

 be obtained. 



The eggs of the Crested Lark are four or five in number, and 

 differ considerably in the colour and character of the markings. 

 Some eggs resemble very closely those of the Calandra Lark, the 

 brown spots being well defined, and the grey markings large and 

 conspicuous. The spots on this type are evenly distributed over 

 the entire surface, but do not hide more than half of the ground- 

 colour. Another type is very finely dusted and speckled with 

 hair-brown, most numerously at the large end of the egg, where 

 many of the markings are confluent, forming a zone. Others 

 somewhat closely resemble those of the Sky Lark, and the mark- 

 ings are so thickly distributed as to conceal most of the pale 

 ground-colour. Some eggs are much yellower than others, and 

 they differ considerably in shape. They vary in length from l'O 

 to 09 inch, and in breadth from 071 to 0'6 inch. 



THE SKY L A E K . 

 (Alauda arvensis.) 



Plate 58, Figs. 11, 12. 



The Sky Lark is very widely distributed throughout the British 

 Islands, and is a resident except in the extreme north. It inhabits 

 nearly the whole of the Pala3arctic region, from England to 

 Kamtschatka. 



The nest is a simple little structure, made externally of dry 

 coarse grass and a scrap or two of moss, and it is lined with finer 

 grass, rootlets, and sometimes a few hairs. These materials are 

 very loosely put together, as is usually the case in most nests 

 built on the ground. 



