Bank lark
| Bank lark | ||||||||||||
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Head of a river lark |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Calandrella raytal | ||||||||||||
| ( Blyth , 1845) |
The bank lark ( Calandrella raytal , Syn .: Alaudala raytal ) is a small species from the lark family. It is smaller than a short-toed lark and its body proportions correspond to that of the stubby lark . The distribution area of the shore lark is in the Indian subcontinent. Together with the gray- headed and white- fronted lark, it is the smallest and relatively short-tailed lark species there. There are three subspecies.
The assignment of the river lark to the genus Calandrella is currently being revised. In 2013, Per Alström and colleagues found in a study on the relationship of the larks that the genus Calandrella would be paraphyletic in the usual delimitation . According to their results, Calandrella consists of two groups of species. For those that do not contain the type species Calandrella brachydactyla , they reactivated the old genus name Alaudala Horsfield & Moore, which was previously considered a synonym , in 1856 (type species: Calandrella raytal ). Accordingly, the bank lark should be transferred to this genus together with the stump lark , the Tschililerche and Alaudala athensis . This change has already been adopted in many cases. However, a more recent study from 2016 found an unstable phylogeny and raised doubts about the monophyly of some species.
The IUCN classifies the stock situation of the river lark as harmless ( least concern ).
features
The river lark reaches a body length of about 12 to 13 centimeters, of which between 4.8 and 5.6 centimeters is the tail. The beak measures between 1.1 and 1.3 centimeters from the skull. It weighs 18 to 19 grams. There is no gender dimorphism .
The top of the body is sand-colored with only one indistinct darker dash. It is only a little more noticeable on the crown and shoulders. The upper tail-coverts are lighter than the back, the tail feathers, on the other hand, are brown-black. The outer flag is only white on the outermost control spring. The underside of the body is uniformly white to creamy white, only on the chest there is a darker dash.
Possible confusion
In their area of distribution, the bank lark can be confused with the females of the white-fronted and gray-fronted lark . However, these have thicker beaks than the shore lark and darker under wing coverts.
Distribution area and habitat
The bank lark is found in Iran, Pakistan, northwest India, Bangladesh and Burma. It is a resident bird in the entire distribution area .
The habitat of the riverside lark are loosely grassed sandbanks along rivers and small islands in larger rivers. It also occurs on islands in the Wadden Sea and in coastal landscapes.
Way of life
The singing flight of the shore lark is very noticeable: the male reaches a height of 30 meters during this singing flight. It then drops slowly with spread wings and tail and finally falls to the ground with closed wings. It only slows down this dive about one meter above the ground.
The diet consists of weed seeds and insects.
Like all larks, the bank lark is a ground breeder. The nest is built on sandbanks, in dry river beds or on river banks. It is often built under the shelter of prickly poppies or tamarisk trees. The clutch consists of three eggs. The nestlings are fed by both parent birds.
literature
- Rudolf Pätzold : The larks of the world . Westarp Sciences, Magdeburg 1994, ISBN 3-89432-422-8 .
- Rudolf Pätzold: Compendium of Larks. All the larks on earth. Jan-Schimkat-Medienpublikation, Dresden 2003, ISBN 3-00-011219-7 .
Web links
Single receipts
- ↑ a b c Pätzold: Compendium of Larks . P. 270.
- ^ Pätzold: Compendium of Larks . P. 272.
- ↑ Per Alström, Keith N. Barnes, Urban Olsson, F. Keith Barker, Paulette Bloomer, Aleem Ahmed Khan, Masood Ahmed Qureshi, Alban Guillaumet, Pierre-André Crochet, Peter G. Ryan (2013): Multilocus phylogeny of the avian family Alaudidae (larks) reveals complex morphological evolution, non-monophyletic genera and hidden species diversity. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 69 (3): 1043-1056. doi : 10.1016 / j.ympev.2013.06.005
- ↑ George Sangster, J. Martin Collinson, Pierre-André Crochet, Guy M. Kirwan, Alan G. Knox, David T. Parkin, Stephen C. Votier (2014): Taxonomic recommendations for Western Palaearctic birds: 10th report. Ibis 157: 193-200. doi : 10.1111 / ibi.12221
- ↑ Martin Stervander, Per Alström, Urban Olsson, Ulf Ottosson, Bengt Hansson, Staffan Bensch (2016): Multiple instances of paraphyletic species and cryptic taxa revealed by mitochondrial and nuclear RAD data for Calandrella larks (Aves: Alaudidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 102: 233-245. doi : 10.1016 / j.ympev.2016.05.032
- ↑ Alaudala raytal in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2016 Posted by: BirdLife International, 2016. Retrieved on February 26 2017th
- ^ Pätzold: Compendium of Larks . P. 271.