30 



British Birds. 



hind-claw, moreover, is lonj,^ and straight. The resident Sky-Lark of the British 

 Islands is a rufous bird, and the birds which visit us on migration, often called 

 ' Northern Larks,' or ' Scotch Larks,' are decidedly larger than our ordinar}' Sk}- 

 Lark, and are darker and greyer in colour. In all the members of this family it must 

 be borne in mind that the females are, as a rule, smaller than the males. 



Our Sky-Lark inhabits the greater part of Europe and breeds even beyond the 

 Arctic Circle. Several races, more or less recognisable from our own bird, represent 

 the true Alanda nrveiisis in Southern Europe and in temperate Asia, and though it 

 is quite certain that two forms are found in Great Britain, their constant inter- 

 breeding renders it very difficult to separate them. Like our Starlings, which 

 undoubtedlj- intermarr}' with the migrants from the Continent, the large Northern 

 Larks also find British mates, and it becomes more and more difficult e\'ery year to 

 distinguish our rufous resident form from the winter visitor which overruns all 

 Great Britain. That our Sky-Lark is a migrant in vast hordes can be proved by 

 anyone who visits the Island of Heligoland in autumn, when, t)n a favourable night, 

 the quantity of Larks which fly over the little sea-girt rock is almost incredible. 

 Giitke speaks of 15,000 Larks having been captured in a single night on Heligoland 

 and estimates that this only represented the capture of one individual in every 10,000 

 which passed over the island. The nest of the Sky- Lark is built on the ground, and 

 is a simple structure of grass, but is generally well concealed. The eggs are from 

 three to five in number, and are so thickly speckled with brown that the greenish 

 white ground colour is obscured, the brown spots being mingled with the underlying 

 grey ones. Very frequentK- the dark spots are congregated at the larger end of the 

 egg, and often form a ring. 



Thi: Short-Tokd h.\RK tCal(i)idit'llii hrachv- ' 



dactyla). This is a diminutive Skj'-Lark in 

 appearance, and has the first primary-quill rudi- 

 mentary : it may, however, be easily recognised 

 bv its curved hind-claw. Unhke the Sky-Larks, 

 in the genus Calandrella the sexes do not differ 

 much in size. The Short-toed Lark is a bird of 

 Southern Europe, and is only of accidental 

 occurrence in Central Europe and Great Britain, 

 where it has occurred on some eight occasions. 



It is of a tame disposition, and is entirely a ground-loving species, and an inhabitant 

 of sandy districts. In habits and nesting it much resembles the Sky-Lark, but the 

 scmg is not so vigorous as in the last-named species, though it also mounts into the 

 air to sing. In winter, the Short-toed Larks congregate in large flocks. The nest 

 is placed on the ground, and is made of dry grass, with a lining of vegetable down 

 and fine hair. The eggs are four or five in number, the ground colour being whitish, 

 but in some instances obscured by a mass of tiny brown dots, while in others the 



The Short-Toed Lark. 



