421* ALAUDID.E. 



According to M. Temminck, this bird is very abundant in 

 Sicily, is found generally along the shores of the Mediter- 

 ranean, in Spain, and in the southern and central parts of 

 France. Pollidore Roux enumerates it as a bird of Pro- 

 vence ; and M. Brehm includes it in his Birds of Germany, 

 but this appears to be the usual boundary of its range north- 

 wards. It feeds on insects and seeds ; makes its nest on the 

 ground, and lays four or five eggs of dull yellow, or pale 

 coffee colour, without any spots. 



The male, Mr. Gould observes, " has the top of the head 

 and all the upper parts of a yellowish, or sandy brown, with 

 the centre of each feather darker ; the quills and tail of a 

 dusky brown, the two outer feathers of the latter having their 

 external edges yellowish-white ; a whitish-yellow streak over 

 each eye ; throat and belly white ; the chest and flanks being 

 tinged with yellowish-brown; bill and feet light brown. The 

 sexes are not distinguishable by the colouring of their plum- 

 age ; the tints of the female are, however, somewhat duller 

 than those of the male. The young during the first autumn 

 have the outer edges of each feather margined with buflp. 



The whole length of the Shrewsbury specimen was five 

 inches and three-quarters ; the tarsal bone three-quarters of 

 an inch ; the hind toe half an inch, the claw of it only one 

 quarter of an inch ; the wing, from the carpal joint to the 

 end of the longest quill-feather three inches and a half; the 

 second quill-feather the longest in the wing, the first and 

 third feathers a little shorter ; the tertials extend backwards 

 as far as the end of the closed wine:. 



