345 



and 1862 respectively. The two occurrences near Brighton are also recorded by Mr. G. Dawson 

 Rowley (Ibis, 1859, p. 330) as follows : — " Two specimens of the Short-toed Lark (Alauda brachy- 

 dactyla) have been obtained near Brighton. I saw one alive on September 26th, 1854, which had 

 been caught by boys on the downs, and kept in confinement some time, not being distinguished 

 from the Sky-Lark. This bird cracked seeds like a Canary, instead of swallowing them whole ; 

 it was very tame, and ultimately killed and stuffed. The second specimen was killed in April 

 1858, by a person on the seashore, who saw it come to land, and light, after a short rest, upon 

 the road, where it immediately began dusting itself. I did not see this bird ; but my informant 

 was the person who killed it, and one who is quite trustworthy : it was afterwards preserved." 



It does not appear ever to have been met with in Scandinavia or Northern Germany ; nor 

 has it been recorded from Belgium ; but Godron speaks of it as rare in Lorraine, and says that 

 it has been killed near Metz. It is found in France ; Degland and Gerbe mention its occasional 

 appearance near Paris, and state that it occurs in Champagne and Burgundy, and is abundant in 

 Provence. This last information is also given by Jaubert and Barthelemy-Lapommeraye, who 

 state that it " arrives in Provence in March, and leaves in September, collecting into large flocks 

 before leaving, and is never met with in winter." In Portugal it must be very common, judging 

 from the number of specimens sent to me by Dr. E. Rey, all of which belong to the race or 

 variety described by Canon Tristram under the name of 0. hermonensis. Lord Lilford writes to 

 me, " the Short-toed Lark is exceedingly common in Southern and Central Spain, particularly 

 affecting rough fallows and the dried edges of the marisma. Another, allied species frequents 

 the wheat-fields of the marisma, and, as I am fully convinced, a third species the bare open 

 marisma, where it breeds under the shelter of clods of dry dung of horses and cattle, doubtless 

 with a view to the concealment of its eggs and young from the innumerable Harriers which are 

 perpetually quartering over these great plains." Mr. Howard Saunders also speaks of it as abun- 

 dant in the plains of Southern Spain. 



Von Homeyer found it exceedingly numerous on the Balearic Islands, frequenting every 

 part of the country, except the mountains and forests. He writes that it sings sometimes in the 

 air, sometimes when sitting on a stone or clod, generally in the morning or evening ; the song is 

 not particularly good. In Italy it is common; but Bailly remarks that, although found in 

 Piedmont, it had not in his time extended to Savoy. Savi says that it is common in Tuscany 

 in the spring and autumn ; and Lord Lilford informs me that he found it very common in 

 Sicily in November 1856. Mr. C. A. Wright writes (Ibis, 1864, p. 60), "this is one of the 

 most characteristic birds of Malta in spring, and does duty among English residents as the 

 Sky-Lark, with which it has some habits in common. In the breeding-season, from April to 

 June, it is abundantly spread in pairs all over the island ; and the song of the male is then 

 constantly heard, encouraging its mate in the labours of incubation. Its mode of ascending in 

 the air is different from that of the Sky-Lark, consisting of a succession of jerks, which may be 

 peculiar to the species. It delights in the wastes and desert tracts of the island. At the 

 commencement of autumn it gathers together in flocks, which appear to be joined by numerous 

 fresh comers from the north ; but all speed away long before the winter sets in." Lord Lilford 

 met with it commonly in Corfu and Epirus in winter ; and Lindermayer records it as " numerous 

 in Greece during the summer, appearing in April, and frequenting the flats near the sea, and 



