THE SKY LARK. 63 



tion of the hinder claws, which are very 

 long and straight, larks generally rest upon 

 the ground; those which frequent trees 

 perch only on the larger branches. They 

 all build their nests on the ground, which 

 exposes them to the depredations of the 

 smaller kinds of voracious animals, such 

 as the weazle, stoat, Sec. which destroy great 

 numbers. The cuckoo, likewise, making 

 no nest of its own, frequently substitutes its 

 eggs in the place of theirs. 



The female makes an artless nest, com- 

 posed of dry grass and roots, and gene- 

 rally places it under the shelter of a clod of 

 earth; her eggs, four or five in number, are 

 of a purplish brown colour, and marked 

 with a number of spots, and streaks of a 

 darker tint : the hen sits fifteen days, and 

 has usually two broods in a year. 



Larks begin to sing very early in Spring, 

 and are seen (particularly during the season 

 of incubation), rising almost perpendicularly 

 to a vast height, till they are no longer visi- 

 ble, warbling the most melodious strains, 

 which may be heard long after the bird i,«( 

 out of sight; rapid execution, sprightliness, 



