100 AMMOMANES LUSITANA. 



across the outer webs of some of the primaries, and will pro- 

 bably be called by some ornithologists A. deserti samliarensis. 



Ammomanes lusitana. 



Alauda lusitana, Gm. S. N. i. p. 798 (1788) ; Degl. Orn. Eur. i. p. 405 



(1849). 

 Ammomanes lusitana, Shelley, B. Egypt, p. 136 (1872). 

 Ammomanes algeriensis, Sharpe, Cat. B. M. xiii. p. 645 (1890) Nubia ; 



Koenig, J. f. O. 1895, p. 441, pi. 8; 1896, p. 216, pi. 7, fig. 6 egg ; 



Nehrkorn, Kat. Eiers. p. 135 (1899) egg. 

 Ammomanes deserti (nee Licht.), Sharpe, P. Z. S. 1895, p. 472 Somali. 



Adult. Above uniform bright sandy buff, with a shade of cinnamon on 

 the upper tail-coverts ; wings pale brown, with paler edges to the feathers, 

 the coverts and outer edges of the secondaries sandy buff like the back ; 

 all but the two outer primaries, with the entire basal portion of the outer 

 webs, rufous buff ; under wing-coverts and the broad partial inner margins 

 to the quills rufous buff; tail, with the entire basal quarter and broad 

 edces to the feathers rufous buff, and the remainder dark brown, which 

 latter colour forms a fairly well-defined large triangular pattern. Ear- 

 coverts sandy buff ; remainder of the head, sides of upper neck and the 

 tliroat buffy white ; under surface of body pale sandy buff, with a few very 

 faintly marked brown spots near the crop. Total length 6-2 inches, culmen 

 0-55, wing 3-9, tail 2-5, tarsus 0-85. Somali (Lort Phillips). 



The Pale Desert-Lark ranges from Somaliland over N. 

 Africa. 



This species may be most readily distinguished from its 

 nearest ally, A. deserti, by its brighter, paler and more sandy 

 colouring, and especially by this colour extending over the 

 basal quarter of the tail. 



Very little is known with regard to these Larks in eastern 

 Africa. In the British Museum there are three specimens, 

 labelled " Somaliland (Lort Phillips) ; " <S , " Ardeh, 14. 7. 94 

 (Dr. A. Donaldson Smith)," and ?, "JMubia (Dr. A. Leith 

 Adams)." All these belong to rather a pale form compared 

 with those from Algeria. 



Dr. Bowdler Sharpe, in 1890, proposed to call this species 



