96 The Birds of Albany County 



MEADOWLARK. — Sturnella magna. 10.76 



Common Summer Resident 



Field marks. — Under parts bright yellow, with black crescent 

 across the breast; upper parts brown, streaked with black; 

 white outer feathers of short tail show conspicuously in 

 flight. 



In the broad meadows where the daisies, clover, black-eyed 

 Susans, and wild carrot hold dominion, the Meadowlark is 

 very common throughout the Hudson and Mohawk Valleys. 

 They arrive almost as soon as the snow has disappeared. In 

 the Fall they become gregarious and, when the air grows 

 frosty, depart for the South. Our bird has few lark-like 

 characteristics, being partial to the earth rather than the sky, 

 and flying low with rapid and somewhat laborious wing 

 strokes. To the observer it appears a plain, brownish bird, 

 as it is extremely difficult to approach near enough to catch 

 even a glimpse of the yellow breast and black crescent. The 

 Meadowlark's song is a faint, sweet whistle — so faint, in fact, 

 that when quite near to one it seems a long distance away. 

 When not on the ground the bird likes to sit on fence-posts 

 and low trees bordering the meadow. Meadowlark is one of 

 the earliest spring arrivals in Albany County. The nest is 

 made of dry grass and placed under a tussock on the ground. 

 Five or six large, white eggs, spotted with brown, are the nest 

 complement. 



