lark

lark

This data is reviewed by the project of data compilation and application of Science Encyclopedia of science popularization in China.

The Lark (scientific name: alaudaarvensis) is a small songbird, which is slightly similar to sparrow in size and feather color. The male and female are similar in appearance. The flowers are brown and light yellow in back, white to dark brown in chest and abdomen. The outer tail is white and the tail is brown. The back of the head is feathered and suitable for terrestrial life. The legs and feet are strong and strong, and the hind toes have a long and straight claw. The hind edge of the tarsometatarsal has shield like scales. It feeds on plant seeds and insects and often moves in groups. During the breeding season, the male is one of the few birds that can sing in flight. Courtship shows off its complicated flight and can "hover" in the air. On the ground, it weaves bowl shaped nests with grass stems and roots. Each nest lays 3-5 eggs, and the incubation period is 10-12 days. Living in grassland, desert, semi desert and other places. Skylark is the national bird of Denmark and France.

Distinguishing features

The upper body is dark sandy brown, covered with prominent black longitudinal lines, with a short crest, which is easy to see when standing up; the outermost pair of tail feathers are almost pure white.

morphological character

The upper body is mostly sandy brown, with broad dark brown axial lines running through each feather; the dark brown longitudinal lines of the upper back and tail covert are fine and brown, so they are more prominent. The hind feathers are slightly elongated and slightly coronoid. The two wing coverings are black brown with brown margin and apex; the primary and secondary flight feathers are also black brown, some of them are brownish white at the tip, and the outer edge is brown. The brown margin is also wide and thick on the inner side of the flight feathers, and the third-order flight feathers are wider on the inner and outer margins. The central pair of tail feathers is black brown, and the broad margin is light brown. The outermost pair is almost pure white. There is a dark brown wedge-shaped spot at the base of the inner wing. The outer wing of the second pair of tail feathers is white, and the inner wing is black brown. The remaining feathers are all black brown, slightly brown white narrow margin. The eye and eyebrow lines are brown and white; the cheek and ear feathers are light brown, and mixed with slender black lines; the zygomatic area is slightly brown. The chest is brownish white, densely covered with dark brown coarse lines; the rest of the lower body is pure white, and the two flanks are slightly brown, sometimes with brown lines. Both sexes are similar.

Young birds: the color of feathers is similar to that of adult birds, but the upper body is black and brown, and the lower body has more black and brown stripes.

The iris is dark brown; the corners of the mouth are brown; the edge of the mouth and the base of the lower mouth are pale; the feet are brown, and the hind claws are longer and slightly straight than the hind toes.

Life habit

They like to live in open environment, so they are especially common in grassland and coastal plain areas. Many of them run on the ground in search of food, play and chase. Sometimes they stand up and erect their crowns, especially when they are frightened. Never perched on a branch. Lark nests are usually built on open ground. They were not found to nest on trees or buildings. On the ground, they mostly chose barren slopes, cemeteries, fields, roadsides and beaches.

The song is soft and loud. It often rushes to the sky vertically from the ground. When it rises to a certain height, it floats slightly in the air. Then it flies straight up, singing and singing, and singing high into the clouds. Therefore, it is called the bird of telling the sky. When they fly high, they often only hear their songs, but it is difficult to see their birds. Landing is also like ascending flight. The two wings often unfold upward, then suddenly fold and fall to the ground, which is very interesting.

Mode of reproduction

Skylarks lay eggs in Hailar area from early May to mid June for more than a month. According to Lou Juxian's observation in Longjing area of Yanji County, Jilin Province, he began to lay eggs on April 18. He laid one egg every day from 5:30 to 6:40. There were 3-5 eggs in each nest. The average size of 15 eggs was 16 (15-17) × 21.8 (20-23) mm, and the average weight of 19 eggs was 2.7 (2.5-3.0) g. The egg is gray, mixed with brown or dark gray spots, especially in the obtuse end of the egg, forming a ring. The eggs are laid by the female. It hatched in about 11 days.

The nestlings ate almost all animal food, and there were beetle fragments, moth larvae, grubs, spiders, stink bugs and other insect fragments in the stomach of 7 birds.

On the 4th day, the chicks can see the feather areas, open their eyes on the 5th day, and leave the nest when they can stand on the 8th-9th day. However, they have no ability to find food and need to be fed by their parents. They can live independently about 10 days after leaving the nest. In the middle or late July, the larks in this area finished their second breeding. At this time, they seldom sing, often cross with their young birds, and began to live a wandering life. They left in the middle and late October.

geographical distribution

Distribution in China

It propagates in Xinjiang, Qinghai, Tibet, Hebei, Shandong, Heilongjiang, Jilin and so on. In winter, they migrate to the South and southeast of Northeast China, the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, and even to the north of Jiangsu and Guangdong.

World distribution

: mainly distributed in the Palaearctic countries. From the east of the former Soviet Union to the Western European countries and Northeast Asia, Japan, Korea, westward through China, Central Asia and North Africa.

Protection level

Subspecies differentiation

There are six subspecies in China

Xinjiang subspecies

Alaudaarvensisdulcllvox

Hume

They breed in Kashi, Yecheng, Junggar basin, Fuyun, Tuoli, Hefeng and Balikun in Xinjiang, China. It is found in western Siberia of the former Soviet Union, from ural along southeast to yesai River, from 61 ° to 66 ° north latitude in the north, from Kazakhstan along the western and central Altay, Western Tianshan, Pamir to northeast Pakistan, and from Khorasan in Iran in the south. Winter migration to southeast Iran, Baluchistan, Arabian Gulf, Pakistan, northwest India.

It is similar to the Northeast Asian species in morphology, but the upper body feathers, including the wing covert feathers, have less black axial lines, and the broad margin is brown, with a little gray outward, so the upper body appears lighter.

Subspecies norvegicus

Alaudaarvensiskiborti

Saleskij

In China, the breeding area is relatively narrow, only in Hulunbuir League in Northeast Inner Mongolia and Jinggong in Central China; in winter, it is found in Fuzhou, Fujian (1959), and in foreign countries, it is distributed in the east of Yenisei in Central Siberia of the former Soviet Union, about to Lena and Zeya rivers, and in the south to the east of central Altay, Mongolia and Korea. The boundary between Northeast and southeast of the distribution area is not very clear, because these places are dangerous; the intermediate type of Xizhou I and ChuZhong 4 exists. It is similar to Xinjiang subspecies, but its body color is dark, dark gray, less sandy, and its upper body has dense axial lines.

Northeast Asian species

Alaudaarvensisintermedia

Swinhoe

Jiuquan and Zhangye in northwest Gansu, Lanzhou in the middle, Maqu in the south, North and south slopes of Qinling Mountains in Shaanxi, Ningxia, northeast Hulunbuir League, Boketu in Southeast Chifeng in Inner Mongolia, Hebei, Henan, Xiaoxing'an Mountains in Northeast China, Wusuli and Changbai Mountains in the middle; shaweishan island in Jiangsu Province in the South; middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River, Fujian, northern Guangdong Province (winter migratory birds). Some of the winter birds belong to the northern subspecies.

Beijing subspecies

Alaudaarvensispekinensis

Swinhoe

In China, they are both travelers and winter migrants. They are found in Manzhouli, Genhe and Qiqihar in the north of Northeast China, Yingkou in the south of Northeast China, Suizhong in the southwest and Hebei Province. They are distributed in northeast Siberia of former Soviet Union, from middle reaches of Lena River, Yana River, middle reaches of indijil River and lower reaches of kolima River to upper reaches of Zeya River, along the coast of Okhotsk Sea, Kamchatka Peninsula and Thousand Islands. They are distributed in Northeast China during migration and winter, lower reaches of Heilongjiang River and Ussuri and Sakhalin islands of former Soviet Union, Japan and Korea. They migrate northward regularly in spring, but do not breed in komandor island and alader Bay. This subspecies is dark in color, rich in brown and black; the new feathers are broad in margin and light yellow; it is the largest of all subspecies, and the wing length of male can reach 124 mm (vaurie, 1959).

Subspecies of Japan

Alaudaarvenslajaponica

TemmineketSchlegel

In China, it is a migratory bird. It can be seen in Jiangsu coastal areas_ Belt. It is mainly distributed in Japan and propagates in Hokkaido, Honshu Island, Sadu and Kyushu. The taxa of Hokkaido and Northern Kobe moved to the lowlands of central and southwestern Japan in winter. The taxa in southern Kobe do not migrate. Some nearby islands also have records.

The body color is similar to that of pekinensis subspecies, but the difference is that the body shape is significantly smaller; the wing tip changes greatly, but most of them are round.

Sakhalin subspecies

Alaudaarvenslalonnbergi

Hachisuka

In Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, I got it once in December. The islands and Sakhalin islands distributed in the southwest Bay of the Okhotsk Sea in the former Soviet Union may also be distributed in the estuary area of Heilongjiang. They migrate to Korea and Japan in winter. It is similar to Japanese subspecies, but larger in size, with slightly heavier stripes on the upper body, and darker than Beijing subspecies.

Chinese PinYin : Yun Que