268 BRITISH BIRDS. 



female^ who crouches low amongst the herhage, and in various ways he 

 will seek to display his charms. She will then often rise into the air, when 

 several males will toy with her and flutter round and round or dart hither 

 and thither with great speed, singing all the time. Sometimes the males 

 will chase each other, and even fight for the possession of the prize. 



At this season of the year the Sky-Lark's song is particularly loud and 

 charming. A few birds will often be tempted to sing by an unusually 

 mild day in winter, but the song is seldom fully resumed before March. 

 The manner in which the Sky-Lark sings, in the full view of all observers, 

 is probably the secret of the bird's popularity. Who has not seen this 

 sombre little bird rise from the meadow-grass or the heath, and has not 

 watched its soaring flight as upward and upward it goes until it appears 

 but a speck or is entirely lost in the sky ? He bounds up from the cover 

 on fluttering wings and with outspread tail, rising a little way in silence, 

 then bursting into song he pursues his upward course. At first the wings 

 are beaten very rapidly, in a fluttering way; but when the bird gets 

 higher the movements are more regular. Sometimes it rises directly 

 upwards, but very often goes far away from the place of its first ascent, 

 sailing over the fields, but in an ever-rising course. When the zenith of 

 its flight is reached it will sometimes fly about for a short time, singing ; 

 but more usually it comes down again directly. The song is continued 

 until the ground is neared, when the bird usually drops like a stone or 

 flutters ofE over the grass ere seeking the cover. These aerial movements 

 are not essential to the bird's song; it will sing quite as sweetly when 

 perched on a clod of earth or on the ground, and it often warbles a few 

 notes when running about amongst the grass or over the fallows. The 

 height of the song-flights also varies considerably. Sometimes the bird 

 may be seen fluttering at a moderate height, singing very sweetly, and 

 remaining in the air for some considerable time ; and it will occasionally 

 sit and sing on a small bush or a wall. When engaged in his soaring 

 flights the little songster will cease his strains and drop to the ground if 

 a Merlin makes its appearance, and if a Sparrow-Hawk do so he soars 

 still higher ; but a Kestrel is never regarded as an enemy. 



The Sky-Lark has no great variety of notes, his compass is small, nor 

 are those he possesses either powerful or rich in tone ; but he pours forth 

 his song so industriously, so continuously, and arranges his notes so har- 

 moniously that the songs of few birds are listened to with more pleasure. 

 The song of the Sky-Lark is preeminently cheerful ; and if the monotony 

 and continuousness of the music reminds you of that of a bagpipe, it 

 has at least no melancholy in its tone : it is not continued for so long 

 a time as is generally supposed, ranging from two minutes to about 

 a quarter of an hour. The call-note of the Sky-Lark cannot be 

 expressed on paper; it may best be described as a liquid musical 



