34 Order Passiformes, Family Motacillidae, Genus Anthus. 



Order Passiformes, Family Motacillidae, Genus 



Anthus. 



Anthus australis adelaidensis — The Southern Pipit, or Ground 



Lark. 



1 Ascription. — Crown of head, neck, and back brown, 

 each feather margined with reddish brown, wings and 

 two central tail feathers blackish brown, margined with 

 light brown, outside tail feather on either side white, • 

 inner webs marked with dark brown, shafts almost 

 white, the next tail feather on either side white, 

 inner webs marked with brown, shafts black. The -re 

 maining tail feathers almost black, and in some instances 

 slightly tipped with white. Under surface buffish white, 

 feathers on the sides of the neck, breast, and flanks having a 

 dark blackish brown stripe down the centre, throat white, line 

 over the eye buffish white, ear-coverts reddish brown. Iris 

 dark brown, bill dark brown, lower mandible flesh colour, feet 

 and legs flesh colour. Birds from the same locality very much 

 in coloration. There is little or no difference between male 

 and female. 



Total length of skin, 147 m.m. ; wing, 82 m.m.; tail, 02 m.m.: 

 tarsus, 24 m.m. ; bill, 13 m.m. 



Distribution. — The whole of South Australia, It is 

 represented throughout the whole of Australia, Tasmania, and 

 the adjoining islands by closely allied subspecies. This 

 bird prefers open grass land, although at times it is 

 fairly plentiful in open forest country, but is never found in 

 thick scrub. When scrub land is cleared for agriculture it is 

 wonderful how soon the pipit appears, and in a few years it 

 becomes one of the commonest birds. 



Habits. — It spends practically the whole of its life upon 

 the ground, though it may occasionally be seen perched upon 

 a fence, or still more rarely upon a tree. It moves on the 

 ground in a series of short, quick runs, bobbing the tail up and 

 down two or three times each time it stops. If disturbed it 

 hops upon a stone or other slight eminence to reconnoitre, and 

 if further disturbed flies forty or fifty yards, then runs a few 

 yards, stops, and runs again. If followed it will do this for 

 perhaps half a mile, then rising to some height it will circle 

 round and fly back to where it was first flushed. In common 

 with other ground birds it feigns a broken wing if suddenly 

 flushed from the nest, 



