Ornithology of Corsica. 
207 
on the west side and found a nest with two eggs. Parrot 
obtained a single dark male bird, which was shot on April 
19 near Cocame. A Lark seen in a cornfield near Aleria on 
May 7 was almost certainly of this species. 
32. Lullula arborea familiaris Parrot. Corsican 
Wood-Lark. 
Lullula arborea familiaris Parrot, Ornith. Monatsber. 
xviii. p. 153 (1910—Corsica). Cf. Hartert, Vog. pal. 
Fauna, i. p. 24 2. 
Local names: Ciurcullu (north), Cuchagiola (south); 
Peiida (Giglioli), generic. A common resident, not only 
in most o£ the open country on the low ground, but also in 
smaller numbers in the clearings in the forests and on the 
hills up to over 3000 ft. Hartert was the first to point out 
the characteristics of this local race, but had only winter- 
killed specimens, which might have been migrants. As 
stated by Parrot, the upper surface is darker and less rusty 
than in the continental form, while the rump and upper tail- 
coverts are olive-grey brown and the streaks on the breast 
more distinct. Whitehead met with flocks in the winter 
months, but Backhouse describes it as haunting the waste 
ground in small parties in winter, and Parrot as usually found 
in pairs. Apparently the breeding-season is late in Corsica, 
for Whitehead found numbers of nests after May 13, and 
those which 1 saw were taken between May 16 and 31. 
The clutch consists of 4 or 5 eggs, on which the hen sits so 
closely that she is sometimes caught by the natives to be 
kept as a cage-bird. The eggs are rather variable in size, 
but the average differs little from that of the ordinary form. 
Average size of 24 Corsican eggs, 2094X 15*96 mm.; max. 
24 3 x 16*4, min. 19*4 X 16 and 20 7 x 15 2. 
33. Alauda arvensis cantarella Bp. Mediterranean 
Skylark. 
Local name: Peuda (Giglioli), generic. Skylarks are 
common winter visitors to Corsica, but the majority have 
left by the end of March. Parrot, however, received a 
female obtained on April 5, so that possibly a few pairs 
q 2 
