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Sky Lark

Alauda arvensisOrder: PASSERIFORMESFamily: Larks (Alaudidae)

Sky Lark (pekinensis) Breeding Male Portrait
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General

Sky Lark: Medium-sized lark (pekinensis), with dark-streaked, brown upperparts and white underparts with streaks on breast and sides. Head has indistinct crest and white eyebrows. Tail is dark with white edges. Sexes are similar.

Range and Habitat

Sky Lark: Common in Hawaii; accidental during winter on Pacific coast to northern California. Siberian race occurs rarely during migration on Aleutians. Preferred habitats include farmlands, moors, salt marsh, heaths, upland pastures, and industrial waste grounds.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"cherrup"

Interesting Facts

  • The Sky Lark is known for the song of the male, which is delivered in hovering flight from heights of 150 to 300 feet, when the singing bird may appear as a dot in the sky from the ground.
  • The male has broader wings than the female. This adaptation may have evolved because of the females' preference for males that sing and hover for longer periods and so demonstrate that they are likely to have good overall fitness.
  • The song Alouette is a song about the plucking of a Sky Lark. Alouette is the French word for Sky Lark.
  • A group of larks has many collective nouns, including an "ascension", "chattering", "exaltation", "happiness", and "springul" of larks.


Author

Gary Owen Dick

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Range Map for Sky Lark
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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.
Family
Species Alauda arvensis
Length6.25 - 7.25 Inches
Wingspan13 Inches

Sky Lark

Sky Lark: Medium lark (pekinensis), dark-streaked, brown upperparts and white underparts with streaks on breast, sides. The head has indistinct crest and white eyebrows. Tail is dark with white edges. Forages on ground by walking and running. Feeds mostly on seeds, grains, and insects.

● Song: "cherrup"

● Foraging & Feeding: Sky Lark: Eats mostly seeds and insects; forages while walking or running on the ground.

● Breeding & nesting: Sky Lark: Three to seven light gray eggs with brown or olive blotches are laid in a nest lined with roots, grass, and hair, and built on the ground in an open field. Incubation ranges from 11 to 12 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Sky Lark: Horned Lark has white spots and streaks on upperparts, and lacks white trailing edge on secondaries. American Pipit has gray upperparts, buff underparts with brown streaks, and lacks crest and white secondary tips.

Flight Pattern

Moderately swift flight with rapid wing beats. Hovers while skylarking in territory at great heights, then glides to ground.
Sky Lark (pekinensis) Breeding Male Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Sky Lark: Common in Hawaii; accidental during winter on Pacific coast to northern California. Siberian race occurs rarely during migration on Aleutians. Preferred habitats include farmlands, moors, salt marsh, heaths, upland pastures, and industrial waste grounds.
BreedingMonogamous
PopulationAccidental in winter on Pacific Coast
MigrationNonmigratory
Weight1.5 Ounces