160 . 



FAMILY ALAUDID.®. LARKS. 



The Larks comprise a large family of wide distribution. The sys- 

 tematic distinctions that characterize the family are rather technical, and 

 as there is only one species in Canada to consider, they will be described 

 under the species on the next pages. 



Genus — Otocoris. Horned Larks. 



474. Horned Lark. shore lake. fr. — l'alotjette ordinaire, l' ortolan. Oto- 

 coris alpestris. L, 7-75. Plate XXIII B. 



Distinctions. The long hind toe nail (Figure 44 b, p. 25), is one of the distinctive 

 marks of the Larks. However, this is shared with the Titlark (Figure 60, p. 27), and 

 the Longspur; the latter, however, is a Sparrow having the typical conical Sparrow bill, 

 very different from that of the Larks. The yellow or creamy throat, with black gorget 

 below, and the erect horn-like tufts, are distinctive of the Horned Lark (Figure 44 a, p. 25). 



Field Marks. The colour marks above and the horns make easily recognizable field 

 marks. 



Nesting. On the ground, in nest of grass often amidst snow-drifts in early spring. 



Distribution. The Horned Lark in its various forms ranges over all North America. 



SUBSPECIES. The Horned Lark is divided into many geographical races or 

 subspecies. It has a very wide range in North America and living under many and varied 

 conditions has developed in different parts of the country along different lines. Thus 

 the desert form is small and pallid or bleached, whereas the northeastern, which is the 

 type form, is large and strongly coloured. The commonest form in eastern Canada is 

 the Prairie Horned Lark O. a. praticola. Originally when the country was well wooded 

 this was probably the prairie form, and did not occur in eastern Canada. The making 

 of clearings, artificial prairies, has permitted it to come east, where it is today the breeding 

 form. In the north, east of Hudson bay, occurs the typical or originally described form 

 0. a. alpestris at present without a recognized common name and here called the Eastern 

 Horned Lark. This is a large bird with a strong suffusion of yellow over the face and 

 eyebrow line. As the average difference is only about half an inch in total length and 

 as all intermediate sizes occur it can be seen that the differentiation between the forms 

 may be somewhat difficult. An attempt to show the difference in coloration is made in the 

 illustration. The Eastern Horned Lark occurs within the settled districts of eastern 

 Canada only as a winter migrant and is rare except in the Maritime Provinces where it is 

 probably the common winter form. Another race, Hoyt's Horned Lark O. a. hoyti, is 

 a northern form, breeding west and northwest of Hudson bay. It is about as large as 

 the Eastern and has the general coloration of the prairie form. The brownish instead 

 of greyish ear-coverts should identify it, but the difference is not great. This form occurs 

 occasionally in the lower Great Lakes region as a winter migrant. 



The distribution of the various races and their migrations in Canada have not been 

 completely worked out and the difficulty of exact determination is so great that no sub- 

 specific determination should be made without expert assistance and a good series of 

 authenticated specimens for comparison. 



The Horned Lark is a bird of the open, frequenting bare fields, beaches, 

 or roadways. In the winter the seeds of weeds left projecting from the 

 snow are its main food supply, and numbers frequent travelled roads for 

 the weeds that grow at their sides and for the partly digested grain dropped 

 by the horses. Occasionally large winter flocks appear. It is in such 

 cases that the rarer migrant forms should be looked for. 



FAMILY CORVID-ffi. JAYS AND CROWS. 



The Crow family is very large and diverse, including many beautiful 

 and highly coloured birds; indeed the famous Bird of Paradise is closely 

 related to this family. The bill (Figure 45, p. 26) is the most easily 

 distinguished character. It is moderately long and stout with a well- 

 arched culmen. At the base are tufts of dense, stiff, bristle-like feathers 



