SKYLARKS AND WOODLARKS. l:j:j 



SKYLARKS AND WOODLARKS. 



THE Skylark, a bird about which so many poets, good and bad, have written, is a 

 common-looking little fellow, about six inches in length, and, like a majority of the 

 most noted songsters, very unpretending in color. The beak is dark brown above, 

 and pale yellow brown at the base : the feathers at the top of the head are dark 

 brown edged with paler brown, and, being rather longer than those on the rest of the 

 body, form a crest, which the bird elevates at pleasure, but chiefly when in full song. 

 The cheeks are pale brown. The upper part of the body is varied with three shades 

 of brown ; the centre of every feather being darkest, and shading off to the outer 

 edge, giving the bird a spotted appearance. The tail is brown, with white outside 

 feathers ; the throat and upper part of breast pale brown, streaked with darker 

 brown ; and the belly a pale yellowish tint. The legs are strong : the hind-claw is 

 the longest, and very straight. This peculiar formation of the foot is an easy way 

 for an amateur to distinguish the bird. 



The Skylark is an inhabitant of most parts of Europe, and is also found in Asia 

 nnd Africa, and being a tough, hardy bird, and able to withstand the hardships of 

 a bleak winter, is found in countless numbers throughout the parts he inhabits. 

 There is certainly no cage-bird so universally kept in fkirope as the Skylark. No 

 matter whether in a rude box-cage he hangs before the lowly cabin of some poor 

 peasant, or in a gilded cage he swings in some narrow, foggy London street, he 

 seems perfectly contented, and pours forth his joyous melody in an endless stream. 

 His song is especially esteemed for its wonderful power and brilliancy. To be heard 

 and enjoyed to the fullest extent, it must be heard on a clear morning, when he 

 rises to loftiest height, on pinions unconfined. As he mounts skyward, he performs 

 an entire original opera, wonderful in its diversity. He is the only performer 

 required, his scope in music being seemingly unlimited, his small pipe pouring forth 

 every sound that can be musically expressed. He is, in fact, a grand church-organ 

 in a condensed form. His first flight commences in lively music, and is gradually 

 deepened into the more serious passages, his voice being modulated as he ascends. 

 As he rises higher and higher, and distance softens the notes, the music seems to 

 vary and become mellow, until at his utmost height, and a mere speck in the heav- 

 ens, one can almost imagine himself listening to the mellow trills of some far-off, 

 aged, soft-noted instrument. The old saying, " Distance lends enchantment to the 

 view," may be m the case of the Skylark changed to " Distance lends enchantment 

 to the hearing." The Lark performs his grand finale as he descends, ceasing almost 

 entirely when almost to the ground. He is most appropriately named by a well- 

 known poet, "the musical cherub." The song of the Skylark is peculiar to itself, 



