Skylark
- For other uses see Skylark
(disambiguation).
The Skylark (Alauda arvensis) breeds across most of Europe and
Asia and in the mountains of north Africa. It is
mainly resident in the west of its range, but eastern populations of this passerine bird are more migratory, moving further south in winter. Even in the milder west of its range, many birds move to
lowlands and the coast in winter. Asian birds appear as vagrants in Alaska; this bird
was also introduced in Hawaii and western North America.
This is a bird of open farmland and heath, familiar throughout its range, not least for its song, delivered non-stop in flight
from heights of 100m or more when the bird itself is just a dot in the sky.
Like most other larks, this is an undistinguished looking species on the ground, mainly brown above and pale below, and with a
short blunt erectile crest. In flight it shows a short tail and short broad wings. The tail and the rear edge of the wings are
edged with white.
The nest is on the ground, with 3-6 eggs being laid. Food is seeds supplemented with insects in the breeding season.
The Skylark has been the subject of many songs and poems; the best known is probably
Percy Bysshe Shelley's Ode on a Skylark, which
begins with the familiar quotation:
- Hail to thee, blithe spirit!
- Bird thou never wert!
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