ALAUDA. 



197 



central tail featliers bi'own^ somewhat conspicuously margined with 

 brownish or fulvous white ; the exterior tail feather on either side 

 wholly white, except a dark brown stripe down the inner margin of 

 the inner web ; the next feather with the whole exterior web pure 

 white ; interior web dark brown ; other tail feathers dark brown, very 

 narrowly* margined with dull white ; the lores and a stripe over and 

 under the eye white or rufescent white ; a very narrow grey lino 

 through the centre of the lores only noticeable in very good specimens 

 or in the fresh bird ; ear-coverts mingled grey brown and fulvous 

 white, and usually exhibiting a somewhat darker spot just behind and 

 below the posterior angle of the eye; the whole lower parts white, 

 with, in some, a very faint rufescent tinge on breast, sides, and flanks, 

 and with numerous narrow or linear darkish brown spots on the breast, 

 very strongly marked, conspicuous in some specimens, reduced almost 

 to speckles in other birds ; the flanks and sides are faintly tinged with 

 brown, or in some pale rufescent; the irides are pale brown; the bill 

 pale greyish or slaty grey, brownish on culmen and the tip, slightly 

 yellowish white at base of lower mandible ; legs and feet fleshy brown, 

 or in some brownish yellow, dusky on joints. 



" Male, Length. — 5'9 to 6'0 inches, expanse 1 0*4 to 11*0, tail from vent 

 2-1 to 2-2, wing 3-3 to 3-5, bill at front 0-35 to 0-38, tarsus 0-75 to 0-8, 

 wings, when closed, reach to within 0*7 to 0*8 of end of tail, weight 

 0-75 oz. 



"'Female, Length. — 5*6 to 5*7 inches, expanse 10 to 10-5, tail from vent 

 2, wing 3-05 to 3-2, bill at front 0-32 to 0-38, tarsus 0-75 to 0-78, 

 wings, when closed, reach to within 0"6 to 0"7 of end of tail, weight 

 0-6 to 0-7 oz." 



Hah. — Sind, Punjab, N. W. Provinces and Oudh, extending to the 

 Himalayas. Resident in Sind, but nothing is known of its nidification. 



Gen. Aland a- — Linn. 



Bill cylindrical, conical or subulate ; nostrils concealed ; wings very 

 long, no spurious quill; 1st, 2nd and 3rd primaries longest, tips of the 

 lesser quill ; marginate; tail forked, short or moderate; head crested. 



Alauda gulgula, Frankl. Proc. Zool. Soc. 1831; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. 

 p. 434, No. 767; Hnme, Str. F. pp. 1, 40, 420, 485; Murray, Edhk., 

 !^ool., Sjc, Sind, p. 192. Alauda leiopus, Ilodgs. — The Indian Sky Laek. 



Head, nape, back, scapulars, and rump dark brown, margined 

 with fulvous ; crest moderately long ; eye-streak pale fulvous ; ear- 

 coverts dusky with a few brown spots ; upper tail-coverts like the 

 back, tinged slightly with rufous ; wing-coverts brown, edged with 

 greyish ; primaries and secondaries brown, with rufous or fulvous 

 margins on their outer webs ; tail dark brown, outermost feather on 

 each side fulvescent white, except a faint dusky margin on the inner 

 margin of the inner web, the next with the outer web only fulvescent; 

 chin, throat, breast and rest of under surface fulvescent white, deeper 

 on the breast and streaked with dusky; bill horny brown, pale beneath; 

 legs fleshy brown ; irides dark brown. 



