288 LARK. 



The female and young birds are brown, imitating the Skylark ; 

 the feathers round the bill pale ; those on the upper parts of the body 

 edged with grey, beneath whitish ; the middle of each feather marked 

 with black ; quills and the two outer tail feathers, margined with 

 white; legs brown. 



Inhabits the driest deserts between the Rivers Volga and Jaick, 

 in Russia, and the whole Tartarian Desert ; is solitary during the 

 summer, but as winter approaches, frequents inhabited parts in 

 numbers together: its song is very trivial. 



A.— Alauda mutabilis, Act. Petr. xv. 459. t. 23. 2. Gm. Lin. i. 796. 

 Mutable Lark, Gen.Syn.w. 381. 



This is about seven inches long. Bill as in the other; irides livid ; 

 plumage black, but on the neck behind, and back, as far as the 

 rump, the feathers have hoary edges, and the axillary ones are hoary ; 

 quills and tail tipped with brown, the last forked ; the outer feather 

 not brown at the tip ; legs and claws black. The female is like the 

 male, but has the forehead hoary. 



In young birds the plumage is ash-coloured, in some inclined to 

 red, and otherwise variegated with grey ; but the females have the 

 hoary forehead in all stages. 



Inhabits Astrachan in winter; flying in flocks to the more retired 

 places, near the Volga, in spring. 



B.— Le Trucal, Levail. Afr. iv. 119. pi. 191. 



In this the plumage is black, the feathers margined with yellow, 

 like scales, but larger on the back. Bill pale, with a brown tip ; 

 quills and tail black, the latter edged with yellow ; the ends of both 



