Backlit Eurasian Skylark

Title

Backlit Eurasian Skylark

Artist

Darren Wilkes

Medium

Photograph - Photograph - Photography - Digital Art

Description

The Eurasian skylark (Alauda arvensis) is a small passerine bird species. It is a wide-spread species found across Europe and Asia with introduced populations in many other parts of the world. The genus name is from the Latin alauda, "lark". Pliny thought the word was originally of Celtic origin. The specific arvensis is also Latin, and means "of the field"

The Eurasian skylark is 16 to 18 centimetres long. It is a bird of open farmland and heath, known throughout its range for the song of the male, which is delivered in hovering flight from heights of 50 to 100 m, when the singing bird may appear as just a dot in the sky from the ground. The long, unbroken song is a clear, bubbling warble delivered high in the air while the bird is rising, circling or hovering. The song generally lasts two to three minutes, but it tends to last longer later in the mating season, when songs can last for 20 minutes or more. The male has broader wings than the female. This adaptation for more efficient hovering flight may have evolved because of female Eurasian skylarks' preference for males that sing and hover for longer periods and so demonstrate that they are likely to have good overall fitness. At wind farm sites, male skylarks have been found to sing at higher frequencies as a result of wind turbine noise.

Like most other larks, the Eurasian skylark is a rather dull-looking species on the ground, being mainly brown above and paler below. It has a short blunt crest on the head, which can be raised and lowered. In flight it shows a short tail and short broad wings. The tail and the rear edge of the wings are edged with white, which are visible when the bird is flying away, but not if it is heading towards the observer. The Eurasian skylark has sturdy legs and spends much time on the ground foraging for seeds, supplemented with insects in the breeding season.

Uploaded

June 19th, 2018

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