PALLAS' S SHORT- TOED LARK. 115 



GRANIVOR^E. 



Family ALAUDID^E. 



Genus Alauda. (Linncsus.) 



Sub-genus Calandrella. (Kaup.J 



PALLAS'S SHORT-TOED LARK. 



Alauda pispoletta. 



Alauda pispoletta, Pallas. 



Calendritis pispoletta, CABANIS. 



Calandrella pispoletta, Swinhoe. Dresser. 



Alaudula Cheleensis, Swinhoe. 



Specific Characters. — Inner secondaries much shorter than in A. brachy- 

 dactyla, reaching only to within about an inch of the tip of the first 

 primary. — Dresser. 



This bird is closely allied to the well-known Short-toed Lark. It 

 differs from it, however, in the structure of the wing, as detailed 

 above, and according to the custom of modern naturalists it must be 

 admitted as a distinct species, until the day arrives when writers on 

 natural history are able to say what a species means. 



The home of this bird is especially the Steppes of Sarpa, between 

 the Caucasus and the Volga, from whence I have a large series of 

 eggs collected by Herr Glitsch, and sent to me through Von Heuglin. 



Mr. Blandford, however, reports its capture in Persia, and Mr. Hume 

 from India. Mr. Swinhoe also tells us that it ranges as far as China. 



I take the following description from Mr. Dresser's "'Birds of 

 Europe:— "Adult male. Upper parts dark grey, the feathers having 

 a central dark mark; quills dark brown, edged with dirty white; 

 secondaries darker in the centre and lighter towards the edge; the 



