270 BIRDS OF ONTARIO. 



Middle tail feathers like the back, the others black, the outer web of the 

 outer pair whitish ; bill, blackish, livid blue at base below ; feet, black. In 

 winter, at which season it is observed in Southern Ontario, the colors are 

 paler and much less decided. Length, 7 to 7.50. Female : Smaller. 



HAB. North-eastern North America, Greenland and northern parts of the 

 Old World, in winter, south in the eastern United States to the Carolinas, 

 Illinois, etc. 



Nest, a slight depression in the ground, lined with grass, horse-hair and 

 feathers. 



Eggs, four or five, grayish-white, marked with spots of brownish-purple. 



The Shore Lark, when I became acquainted with it twenty-five 

 years ago, was a rare winter visitor in Ontario, only a few being- 

 observed. They usually are found in company with the snowbirds, 

 and are thoroughly terrestrial in their habits, seldom alighting any- 

 where but on the ground. While here they spend most of their 

 time, during the short days of winter, searching for their daily fare 

 oil bare, gravelly patches, from which the snow has been blown away. 

 Occasionally, toward the end of March, just before leaving, I have 

 seen the male settle himself on a hillock and warble out a pleasing 

 lark -like song, which is probably given with more power and pathos 

 later in the season near his grassy home, with his mate for an 

 audience. 



This is the north-eastern type of the family, and it is believed to 

 be identical with the British bird of the same name. In Ontario it 

 is as rare as formerly, its breeding place being far to the north and 

 east, and its migratory course generally along the coast of the Atlantic. 

 It breeds abundantly in the region around Hudson Bay, including 

 Labrador, and has also been found in Greenland. In the south and 

 west it is represented by several varieties, differing somewhat in size 

 and markings. 



The present species, though rather irregular in its movements, is 

 often very abundant along the shores of the eastern States. It 

 breeds in Newfoundland, and some are supposed to spend the summer 

 in Maine, but the bulk of the species go farther north. 



OTOCORIS ALPESTRIS PRATICOLA HENSH. 

 195. Prairie Horned Lark. (4746) 



Adult male : In spring, posterior portion of the crown, occiput, nape, 

 sides of the neck and breast, lesser wing coverts and shorter upper tail coverts, 

 light vinaceous ; back, scapulars and. rump, grayish-brown ; the feathers with 

 darker centres, becoming darker and much more distinct on the rump ; middle 



