ALAUDULA. 357 



Upper surface of the body greyish brown with narrow dark brown mesial 

 streaks to the feathers ; lores, supercilium and feathers under the eye white ; 

 ear coverts streaked with grey and brown ; wings brown, the coverts and 

 tertiaries margined with pale fulvescent or whitish ; tail brown, edged with 

 greyish white ; the outermost tail feathers all white, except the edge of the 

 inner webs, the penultimate white on the outer webs on the marginal half, 

 brown on the inner webs ; under surface of the body white with a few small 

 dark streaks on the breast. Bill horn colour ; legs fleshy yellow ; irides brown ; 

 claws pale horn. 



Length. 5*4 to 5-5 inches; wing 3 ; tail r8 ; culmen O 6; tarsus 075. 



Halt. The banks of the Hooghly, Ganges and Indus, also the Brahmapootra 

 and the Irrawaddy in Upper Burmah. Occurs also in Assam and Northern 

 India. Gates says he observed this Lark near Thayetmyo, where it was 

 common. It runs along the edges of the sand-banks very swiftly, feeding 

 on minute insects which lie at the water's edge. Breeds along the sandy 

 dunes which fringe the Ganges and its numerous affluents, and in similar 

 situations along the Brahmapootra, the Irrawaddy and the Nerbudda. It lays 

 in March, April and May. Hume says it makes a tiny circular nest in some 

 little hollow under a tuft of grass or tamarisk, or beside and partly under 

 a stranded log, the fragments of some old bo'at, or a large stone. The eggs 

 are 2, sometimes 3 in number ; two is however the normal number. In shape, 

 size, markings and general appearance not unlike those of Pyrrhulauda grisea. 



901. Alaudula adamsi, Hume, Ibis, 1871, p. 405; id., Str. F. i. 



p. 213; v. 327; Murray, Handbk., Zool., fyc., Sind, p. 190. The LITTLE 

 SAND-LARK. 



The following is a description of the species by Mr. Hume : 



In the winter the whole upper surface is very pale grey or whitey brown, all 

 the feathers narrowly centred with grey brown, so as to produce a striated 

 appearance. There is in many specimens a more or less perceptible, but 

 still very faint rufous tinge on the back. The wings are pale brown, the outer 

 webs of the first primaries nearly entirely cream colour, the other primaries 

 narrowly tipped and margined white ; secondaries more broadly ; tertiaries and 

 coverts still more broadly margined with fulvous or slightly greyish white ; the 

 central tail feathers brown, somewhat conspicuously margined with brownish 

 or fulvous white ; the exterior tail feather on either side wholly white, except 

 a dark brown stripe down the inner margin of the inner web ; the next feather 

 with the whole exterior web pure white ; interior web dark brown ; tail 

 feathers dark brown, very narrowly margined with dull white ; the lores and a 

 stripe over and under the eye white or rufescent white ; a very narrow grey line 

 through the centre of the lores only noticeable in very good specimens or in the 

 fresh bird ; ear coverts mingled grey brown and fulvous white, and usually 

 exhibiting a somewhat darker spot just behind and below the posterior angle 



