PASSERINE BIRDS OF CEYLON. 177 



Alauda GULGULA AUSTRALIS. 

 The Indian Sky Lark. 



Alauda gulgula (Gates, Vol. II., p. 326 ; Legge, p. 630 and 1217). 



Description. — Feathers of upper plumage rich, dark brown 

 broadly edged with brownish-buff ; on the hind-neck and 

 upper back the margins are very broad, the brown being 

 reduced to a wide shaft-stripe ; wing coverts slightly paler 

 brown and with whitish tips ; wing quills brown with fulvous 

 margins, the outer webs tinged with rufous at the base ; 

 the outside tail feather almost entirely buffy -white ; the next 

 with the outer web and extreme tip buffy-white, rest of tail 

 brown with paler margins ; a whitish streak from the nostrils 

 over the eye ; ear coverts and cheeks streaky-brown ; lower 

 plumage pale, slightly rufous-bufl, the breast boldly streaked 

 with dark brown ; sides of the body more faintly streaked. 



Young birds are more rufous ; the feathers of the upper 

 surface are rounded and white at the tips. 



Bill dark horny-brown above, paler beneath ; iris brown ; 

 legs fleshy-brown. 



Dimensions rather variable ; length about 6*3; wing 3 • 35 ; 

 tail 2*1; tarsus ' 9 ; bill from gape • 7. 



Distribution. — ^The Indian Sky Lark is found almost 

 throughout the Indian Empire, and ranges eastwards to 

 Southern China and the Philippines. The present sub-species 

 occurs in Southern India and Ceylon. With us it appears 

 to be resident all the year round in the drier parts of the low- 

 country. In the damp west and south-west it is only a north- 

 east monsoon visitor, probably because it nests on the ground, 

 and in these parts cannot be sure of a dry spell during the 

 breeding season. It is also resident in the drier hill country, 

 and I have found it breeding at 4,500 feet on the Uva Patanas. 



Habits. — Much the same as those of the English Sky Lark. 

 It is fairly abundant on the grassy flats round the coastal 

 lagoons and at the head of some of the larger inland tanks. 

 The song is not so loud or sustained as that of the English 

 Sky Lark, nor does it mount and sing for so long a period. 

 The breeding season is during the dry weather, from April 



23 6(17)21 



