There are 10 species of lark on the British list, but only four occur here regularly. With its yellow and black head pattern, Shore Lark is distinctive in its own right, but the other three are all brown and streaky. Of these, by far the commonest and most familiar is Eurasian Skylark. It is a bird of open ground, particularly associated with arable farmland, but it can be found breeding throughout most of rural Britain and Ireland. There is no doubt that, in historical times, Eurasian Skylark increased considerably with the spread of agriculture. In recent years, however, numbers have once again declined, an inevitable result of agricultural intensification. Although considered a resident, there is a general autumn retreat from high ground and some southward withdrawal, when large flocks often gather in suitable fields or are seen overhead. In addition, cold weather movements are a characteristic of the species in heavy winter snowfall.
Woodlark
Woodlark is a temperate and Mediterranean species which shuns both severe cold and wet and windy climates, its range being largely confined by the 17°C and 31°C July isotherms (Cramp 1998). In Britain, it is right at the north-western limit of its range and survives here by being a habitat specialist, breeding locally in forest clearings and heathland. The species’ numbers and range fluctuate with the vagaries of the climate, and it is currently enjoying something of an up-turn. A survey in 2006 revealed the surprisingly high total of 3,064 territories, although it remains to be seen whether it has declined during the recent run of hard winters. The species is concentrated in East Anglia, the Home Counties, Sussex and Hampshire, with significant populations also found in Dorset and Devon and as far north as Nottinghamshire, Staffordshire and Yorkshire (Holling et al 2011). Some sites are deserted in winter, when small flocks may appear on nearby stubble fields, often with Eurasian Skylarks. A few are seen at south and east coast migration sites in April-May and, more especially, in October-November. However, birds seen away from regular areas should be identified with caution, particularly fly-overs on migration, and such records are often met with a certain degree of scepticism.
Greater Short-toed Lark
This species breeds on steppe grasslands and semidesert zones across southern Europe and North Africa, eastwards into central China, its northern range being limited by the 20°C July isotherm. It spread in Europe with the expansion of lowdensity farming but, inevitably, recent agricultural intensification has provoked population declines and range contractions (Hagemeijer and Blair 1997). It is a regular but very scarce visitor to Britain, and was dropped from the rarities list as long ago as 1993. Fraser and Rogers (2006) analysed national trends up to 2003, by which time the British total had reached 706 records. Numbers were generally high between 1991 and 2000, with an all-time peak of 45 in 1996, but there appears to have been a steady decline here since 2000, no doubt related to the aforementioned population declines. Records occur mainly f rom late April to June, with a peak in May, and again from September to early November, with a peak in early October. There have even been a few in winter. Autumn records have outnumbered those in spring, but it is autumn birds that have declined most dramatically. A peculiar feature of its occurrence patterns is that it is very much a bird of islands. During the period 195885, Shetland and Scilly accounted for the lion’s share of records. Shetland had 45 per cent of spring birds and 34 per cent of autumn, whereas Scilly had 14 per cent of those in spring and 36 per cent of those in autumn (Dymond, Fraser and Gantlett 1989). Unfortunately, there has so far been no further analysis of the records since 2006. Most autumn vagrants are first-winters, but they may retain some scalloped, dark-centred juvenile scapulars. The species shows considerable geographical variation and British records fall into two broad categories: sandy-coloured individuals, presumed to be from southern and western parts of the range, and greyer birds suspected to be of more eastern origin, such as the Central Asian subspecies longipennis. The former category seems to account for many spring records, while the latter appear to occur mainly in autumn (Fraser and Rogers 2004). In my experience of 17 in Britain, most have in fact been quite consistent in their rather sandy appearance. Interestingly, Kehoe (2006) stated that, although southern and eastern birds are assumed to occur, subspecific identification beyond the breeding range is fraught with difficulty. Consequently, records here are regarded as being of indeterminate form.
TWO: Eurasian Skylark (Snoring, Norfolk, 25 June 2010). This species is famous for its song, an evocative sound of summer farmland. Not surprisingly, it has been immortalised in poetry and music, with The Lark Ascending by Ralph Vaughan Williams being the most popular choice of music on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs. Although, as in this photograph, it may sing from the ground or a perch, it usually does so from a stationary position high in the sky. The familiar song is a continuous thin, musical refrain, often containing strongly mimetic phrases.
FOUR: Greater Short-toed Lark (Eilat, Israel, 20 April 2000). This image shows a worn bird sleeked down in the heat. It is a small, compact, pale and almost sparrow-like lark which can appear rounded and dumpy or sleek and pipit-like. Note the distinctive contrasting dark centres to the median coverts which may produce a dark line across the wing, reminiscent of Tawny Pipit. Also distinctive is a faint semi-circular ‘sub-ocular line’ below the eye. The very long tertials more or less completely cloak the primaries – a diagnostic difference from the even rarer Lesser Short-toed Lark.
THREE: Woodlark (Tuscany, Italy, 28 May 2006). Unlike Eurasian Skylark, Woodlark readily perches in trees, but it too mostly feeds on the ground. The facial pattern is stronger than skylark’s, with a more noticeable dark stripe behind the eye and a variable dark brown rear border to the rather richly coloured orangey-brown ear coverts. As this photograph shows, a distinctive feature is the thick buffy-white tips to the noticeably black primary coverts. These form a distinctive black-and-buff patch on the edge of the closed wing. Note also the shortish tail.
SIX: Woodlark (Tuscany, Italy, 23 May 2006). When settled, a distinctive character of the species is the prominent creamy-white supercilium; the supercilia meet on the nape, producing a pale ‘V’ or a pale mottled area. The upperparts are strongly streaked black on quite a rich rusty-brown background (brightest in fresh plumage), while the whitish underparts show a strong and obvious breast band of well-defined blackish streaks. Again, this photograph shows well the characteristic ‘white-black-white’ pattern on the alula and primary coverts, often visible in flight.
FIVE: Eurasian Skylark (Fair Isle, Shetland, 6 October 2011). This photograph of a somewhat dishevelled individual shows that, plumagewise, Eurasian Skylarks can appear rather nondescript with a relatively plain face. When the crest is lowered, the head looks pointed and triangular, rather than ‘crested’. Note also the long primary projection (usually longer than Woodlark’s). Adult plumage is a mass of streaks, while juvenile skylarks and Woodlarks are noticeably scalloped on the crown, back and scapulars, but this plumage is lost after a complete late summer/early autumn postjuvenile moult.
SEVEN: Greater Short-toed Lark (Great Orme, Conwy, 30 September 2006). This bird is plain whitish below, but note the small dark patch on the sides of breast which may be invisible until the bird stretches upwards. Diffuse fine streaking may be present below the dark patches and sometimes also across the upper breast (even in spring). In fresh plumage, the species shows thick, creamy fringes to all the wing feathers. Its legs are a noticeably pale orange or pink and it moves in erratic bursts with a hesitant, jerky walk.
EIGHT: Eurasian Skylark (Newborough Warren, Anglesey, 25 January 2004). As this photograph shows, the crest may be sleeked down, producing a flattened head profile. Although it has an open and pleasant facial expression, the pattern is subdued and rather nondescript, with the both the supercilium and eyestripe being unexceptional. The dark ‘sub-ocular crescent’ is perhaps the most distinctive feature. It is otherwise a quite large lark with an all-purpose bill, somewhere between a seed-eater and an insect-eater, as befits its omnivorous diet.
NINE: Woodlark (Macedonia, Greece, 11 January 2005). Woodlark is distinctly smaller than Eurasian Skylark and structural differences should instantly attract attention: it usually appears stockier with a short crest and a short tail. In this photograph, it looks oddly Whinchat-like, both in structure and plumage. Woodlark’s song is one of the most beautiful of all British birds: rich and mellow but delivered in shorter phrases than Eurasian Skylark, and containing a characteristic clear downwardlilting lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lu-lu – this and its association give it the scientific name Lullula arborea. Its distinctive song is often given in a circular song flight.
TEN: Greater Short-toed Lark (Mandria, Cyprus, 5 April 2012). Short-toed Larks usually look pale and sandy compared with the familiar Eurasian Skylark, but they vary in plumage tone across their range, some being sandy, some greyer and others slightly rufous on the crown (these last birds apparently being commoner in Spain and North Africa). It lacks a strong crest, often appearing rather round headed. This, combined with a small but rather thick pale bill, a noticeable creamy supercilium and a dark eyestripe behind a beady black eye, creates a facial expression reminiscent of a female House Sparrow.
TWELVE: Woodlark (Curonian Spit, Lithuania, 25 September 2006). In flight, Woodlark’s short tail is particularly obvious, and it looks very round winged compared with Eurasian Skylark. It also has a jerky, undulating flight (vaguely recalling that of Lesser Spotted Woodpecker). It lacks Eurasian Skylark’s white trailing edge to the wing and the outer tail feathers are often sullied with brown; instead, it shows a more obvious white tail tip. Its flight calls are low, soft and musical, but not particularly memorable: ti-loo-ee, tu-loo, tu-willit, wlee-toloo.
THIRTEEN: Greater Short-toed Lark (northern Greece, 3 May 2006). In flight, this species appears slim and evenly proportioned, appearing rather more pipit-like than most other larks. Its flight is usually fast and dashing, often close to the ground. It typically looks pale and sandy in flight, but it lacks Eurasian Skylark’s white trailing edge to the wings and shows only inconspicuous white outer tail feathers. Its normal flight call is a hard, clipped t-trip trip or trrick trrick, a more clipped chr-ip chr-ip or a more trilling pirrrick, all vaguely suggesting a harder, more sparrow-like version of Eurasian Skylark’s call.
ELEVEN: Eurasian Skylark (Tuscany, Italy, 1 May 2007). In many ways Eurasian Skylark is more distinctive in flight than on the ground. It is relatively slim winged for a lark and evenly proportioned. It shows a conspicuous white trailing edge to the wing and white outer tail feathers. On the breeding grounds it has a distinctive fluttery flight, with the wings bowed strongly downwards. It indulges in aerial chases, hovering above the vegetation before alighting. The most familiar calls are a hard, rippling chirrup or treeip as well as soft, conversational see-up notes.