confluent. Some egg's are marked with small spots or speckles alone. Deep shell marks are fainter and 
somewhat purplish. 
In long-diameter they measure from 1.00 to 1.15. And in short-diameter from .76 to .82. The largest 
specimen in four sets is 1.13 x .80; the smallest, 1.00 x .78. The ordinary size is about 1.05 x .79. 
DIFFERENTIAL POINTS : 
The nest and eggs, when together, can always he easily recognized by the characters given above. 
REMARKS : 
The illustration, Plate XXXVIII, represents a nest and four eggs, taken April 6th, 1882. The nest 
is a good specimen of the domed variety. It was lifted from its position in a clump of grass, and placed 
upon the ground near by, so that the drawing would show its composition and construction to better 
advantage. Below, two eggs are figured, representing the usual sizes and markings; as those in the nest 
are somewhat foreshortened and obscured. 
The Meadow Lark is a very shy bird at all times, and particularly during the nesting season. 
They will rarely go near their nest when conscious they arc observed, and they arc always on the watch 
for danger. 
The best way to find the nest is to walk back and forth slowly through the field in which it is 
supposed to be, with the expectation of flushing the bird from her eggs. Faithful watching may discern 
the birds at work building, and an experienced person may detect the nest by sight. The female sits 
closely, and will not leave her home without she is in imminent peril. When driven from her nest she 
often feigns lameness in leg and wing, and will flutter about, uttering a low cry in imitation of that 
of the young in distress, hoping in this way to divert the attention of the intruder, by tempting him to 
catch a wounded bird, apparently an easy thing to do. Larks arc partial to country roads, and, at all 
seasons, are frequently seen perched upon the fence or feeding in the road-side grass. During the time 
the female is sitting, the male generally keeps guard from some neighboring bush or fence, occasionally 
singing a medley or uttering a few cheering notes. If approached he betrays anxiety by an uneasy jerk 
of his tail, and when he considers the danger past, sometimes he will fly directly to his mate upon the 
nest, perhaps to tell some trumped up story of his courage. In this way I have several times been led 
to nests. Only the other day, while driving through the country in a buggy, I passed a Lark, sitting 
upon the fence, that appeared to me more uneasy than necessary. He did not fly, however, until the 
buggy was well past, then he went straight to a little knoll in a wheat-field about fifty yards from the 
road. I stopped the horse, and walked to the spot, when, suddenly, from almost under my feet, two 
Larks flew up and off, and there, within a foot, was a beautiful open nest and five eggs. 
128 
