SKY LARK. 453 
The Sky Lark is universally distributed over the British 
Islands, but in severe weather in winter, accompanied 
with snow, a large portion leave Scotland in flocks to come 
southward. In Orkney and Shetland it is only a summer 
visitor, according to Mr. Dunn, retiring to a more south- 
ern latitude on the approach of winter. It is a common 
bird in Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, during summer, 
and a few remain in winter; but the greater part migrate 
southwards. The Sky Lark does not appear to visit the 
Faroe Islands, Iceland, or Greenland. M. Temminck says 
it inhabits Siberia, Russia, and Western Asia. It is uni- 
versal over the European continent to the shores of the 
Mediterranean, and inhabits also Corfu, Sicily, Malta, 
the Morea, the shores of the Black Sea, Smyrna, and 
North Africa. Mr. H. E. Strickland when at Smyrna, 
says, ‘‘immense flocks of this bird arrived from the 
northward at the commencement of the severe weather 
at Christmas 1835.” 
The beak is dark brown above, pale yellow brown at 
the base of the lower mandible; irides hazel; the feathers 
on the top of the head are elongated, forming a crest, 
which the bird elevates at pleasure; in colour they are 
dark brown, with pale brown edges; the nape, back, wings, 
and upper tail-coverts, varied with three shades of brown, 
the darkest of which occupies the longitudinal line of the 
shaft of each feather, and the margin of the feather is the 
lightest ; the wing-coverts and tertials have broad light 
brown edges; the quill-feathers dusky brown; the outer 
tail-feather on each side is white, with a longitudinal streak 
of brown on the inner web; the next tail-feather on each 
side is dark brown, with a longitudinal streak of white on 
the outer web; the rest dusky brown, with light brown 
edges; the throat and upper part of the breast are pale 
