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138 BIRDS OF EGYPT. 



103. Galerit A CRIST ATA (Linn.). Crested Lark. 



V y Tkis is one of the most abundant birds in Egypt. It is 



very similar to the Skylark in general appearance ; but it 

 never soars very high, and has but an indifferent song. 



1 have before me for comparison one hundred specimens 

 of the present species from S. Europe, N. Africa, Abyssinia, 

 the River Gambia, and China ; from among this series the 

 Egyptian specimens may be easily picked out by their gene- 

 rally darker coloration, while some of those from Algeria and 

 Palestine are the lightest in the series. Above the First 

 Cataract I observed that the Crested Lark appeared lighter 

 in colour than those in Egypt. 



The following description of the plumage is taken from 

 live. specimens shot by myself in Egypt : — 



Upper plumage very similar to that of Alauda urvensis, 

 but darker ; wings brown, feathers paler towards their edges, 

 inner web of the quills marked with cinnamon-brown ; tail 

 dark brown, outer feathers edged with buff: a crest on the 

 head of narrow dark brown feathers, edged with sandy ; 

 underparts creamy-white, shading off darker on the sides of 

 the chest and flanks, and spotted with dark brown on the sides 

 of the throat and crop ; two thirds of the under surface of 

 the wing pale cinnamon-brown ; beak yellowish-brown, darkest 

 on the culmen ; legs pale brown ; irides brown. 



Entire length Q1 inches ; culmen 06; wing, carpus to tip, 

 4 ; tarsus 1. 



Fig. Sharpe & Dresser, B. of Eur. part xiii. 



G. rutila (Miill.) of Mr. G. R. Gray's ' Hand-list of 

 Birds' (vol. ii. p. 119) has the locality Egypt attached to 

 it. As I cannot detect any specific difference in the Crested 



