View source for Lark

{{Short description|Family of birds}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| name = Lark
| image = Alauda arvensis Linnaeus 1758.jpg
| image_caption = [[Eurasian skylark]] (''Alauda arvensis'')
| taxon = Alaudidae
| authority = [[Nicholas Aylward Vigors|Vigors]], 1825
| subdivision_ranks = Genera
| subdivision = see text
}}

'''Larks''' are [[passerine]] [[bird]]s of the family '''Alaudidae'''. Larks have a [[cosmopolitan distribution]] with the largest number of species occurring in Africa. Only a single species, the [[horned lark]], occurs in North America, and only [[Horsfield's bush lark]] occurs in Australia.  Habitats vary widely, but many species live in drier regions.  When the word "lark" is used without specification, it often refers to the [[Eurasian skylark]] ''(Alauda arvensis)''.<ref>{{Cite OED | lark | id=105876 }}</ref>

==Taxonomy and systematics ==
The family Alaudidae was introduced in 1825 by the Irish zoologist [[Nicholas Aylward Vigors]] as a subfamily Alaudina of the finch family [[Fringillidae]].<ref>{{cite book | last=Bock | first=Walter J. | year=1994 | title=History and Nomenclature of Avian Family-Group Names | series=Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History | volume= 222 | publisher=American Museum of Natural History | place=New York | pages=149, 264 | hdl=2246/830 }}<!--Linked page allows download of the 48MB pdf--></ref><ref>{{ cite journal | last=Vigors | first=Nicholas Aylward | author-link=Nicholas Aylward Vigors | year=1825 | title=On the arrangement of the genera of birds | journal=Zoological Journal | volume=2 | pages=391–405 [398] | url=https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/2255535 }}</ref> Larks are a well-defined family, partly because of the shape of their {{Birdgloss|tarsus}}.<ref name="Ridgway 1907">{{cite journal | last = Ridgway | first = Robert | author-link = Robert Ridgway | year = 1907 | journal = Bulletin of the United States National Museum | volume = 50 | title=The Birds of North and Middle America, Part IV | pages = 289–290 | url = https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/7492565 }}</ref> They have multiple [[Scute#Birds|scutes]] on the hind side of their tarsi, rather than the single plate found in most [[songbirds]]. They also lack a [[pessulus]], the bony central structure in the syrinx of [[songbirds]].<ref>{{cite book | last=Ames | first=Peter L. | year=1971 | title=The morphology of the syrinx in passerine birds | series=Bulletin 37, Peabody Museum of Natural History | place=New Haven, Connecticut | publisher=Yale University | page=104 | url=http://peabody.yale.edu/sites/default/files/documents/scientific-publications/ypmB37_1971.pdf | access-date=2018-07-22 | archive-date=2021-02-25 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225094838/http://peabody.yale.edu/sites/default/files/documents/scientific-publications/ypmB37_1971.pdf }}</ref>  They were long placed at or near the beginning of the songbirds or oscines (now often called [[Passeri]]), just after the [[suboscines]] and before the [[swallow]]s, for example in the [[American Ornithologists' Union]]'s first check-list.<ref name=Patterson2002>{{cite web | last = Patterson | first = Bob | year = 2002 | title = The History of North American Bird Names in the American Ornithologists' Union Checklists 1886 - 2000 | url = http://members.aol.com/darwinpage/zoo/AOUd.htm | access-date = 24 June 2008}}</ref>  Some authorities, such as the [[British Ornithologists' Union]]<ref name=Dudley2006>{{cite journal | last1 = Dudley | first1 = Steve P. | last2 = Gee | first2 = Mike | last3 = Kehoe | first3 = Chris | last4 = Melling | first4 = Tim M. | year = 2006 | title = The British List: A Checklist of Birds of Britain (7th edition) | journal = Ibis | volume = 148 | issue = 3 | pages = 526–563 | doi = 10.1111/j.1474-919X.2006.00603.x | url = http://eprints.gla.ac.uk/153488/1/153488.pdf | doi-access = free }}</ref> and the ''[[Handbook of the Birds of the World]]'', adhere to that placement.  However, many other classifications follow the [[Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy]] in placing the larks in a large oscine subgroup [[Passerida]] (which excludes [[Corvidae|crows]], [[shrike]]s and their allies, [[Vireonidae|vireo]]s, and many groups characteristic of Australia and southeastern Asia).  For instance, the American Ornithologists' Union places larks just after the crows, shrikes, and vireos.  At a finer level of detail, some now place the larks at the beginning of a [[Taxonomic rank|superfamily]] Sylvioidea with the swallows, various "[[Old World warbler]]" and "[[Old World babbler|babbler]]" groups, [[Passerine|and others]].<ref name=Barker2002>{{cite journal | last = Barker | first = F. Keith |author2=Barrowclough, George F. |author3=Groth, Jeff G. | year = 2002 | title = A phylogenetic hypothesis for passerine birds: taxonomic and biogeographic implications of an analysis of nuclear DNA sequence data | journal =Proceedings of the Royal Society B | volume=269 | issue=1488 | pages= 295–308 | doi = 10.1098/rspb.2001.1883 | doi-access=free | pmc=1690884 | pmid=11839199}}</ref><ref name="Alström2006">{{cite journal | last1 = Alström | first1 = Per | last2 = Ericson | first2 = Per G.P. | last3 = Olsson | first3 = Urban | last4 = Sundberg | first4 = Per | title = Phylogeny and classification of the avian superfamily Sylvioidea | journal = Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution | volume = 38 | issue = 2 | year=2006 | pages=381–397 | doi = 10.1016/j.ympev.2005.05.015 | pmid = 16054402}}</ref> [[Molecular phylogenetic]] studies have shown that within the Sylvioidea the larks form a [[sister taxon|sister]] [[clade]] to the family [[Panuridae]] which contains a single species, the [[bearded reedling]] (''Panurus biarmicus'').<ref>{{cite journal | last1=Fregin | first1=Silke | last2=Haase | first2=Martin | last3=Olsson | first3=Urban | last4=Alström | first4=Per | year=2012 | title=New insights into family relationships within the avian superfamily Sylvioidea (Passeriformes) based on seven molecular markers | journal=BMC Evolutionary Biology | volume=12 | issue=157 | pages=1–12 | doi=10.1186/1471-2148-12-157 | pmid=22920688 | pmc=3462691 | doi-access=free }}</ref> The phylogeny of larks (Alaudidae) was reviewed in 2013, leading to the recognition of the arrangement below.<ref name="Alström et al. (2013)">{{cite journal|last1=Alström|first1=Per|last2=Barnes|first2=Keith N.|last3=Olsson|first3=Urban|last4=Barker|first4=F. Keith|last5=Bloomer|first5=Paulette|last6=Khan|first6=Aleem Ahmed|last7=Qureshi|first7=Masood Ahmed|last8=Guillaumet|first8=Alban|last9=Crochet|first9=Pierre-Andre|last10=Ryan|first10=Peter G.|title=Multilocus phylogeny of the avian family Alaudidae (larks) reveals complex morphological evolution, non-monophyletic genera and hidden species diversity|journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution|year=2013|volume=69 | issue=3 |pages=1043–1056|doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2013.06.005|pmid=23792153|url=http://pub.epsilon.slu.se/11222/90/alstrom_et_al_140630.pdf}}</ref><ref name=ioc/>

The genus level cladogram shown below is based on a [[molecular phylogenetic]] study of the larks by Per Alström and collaborators published in 2023. The subfamilies are those proposed by the authors.<ref name=alstrom2023>{{Cite journal | last1=Alström | first1=P. | last2=Mohammadi | first2=Z. | last3=Enbody | first3=E.D. | last4=Irestedt | first4=M. | last5=Engelbrecht | first5=D. | last6=Crochet | first6=P.-A. | last7=Guillaumet | first7=A. | last8=Rancilhac | first8=L. | last9=Tieleman | first9=B.I. | last10=Olsson | first10=U. | last11=Donald | first11=P.F. | last12=Stervander | first12=M. | date=2023 | title=Systematics of the avian family Alaudidae using multilocus and genomic data | journal=Avian Research | volume=14 | article-number=100095 | doi=10.1016/j.avrs.2023.100095 | doi-access=free}}</ref> For two species the results conflict with the taxonomy published online in July 2023 by [[Frank Gill (ornithologist)|Frank Gill]], [[Pamela Rasmussen]] and David Donsker on behalf of the [[International Ornithological Committee]] (IOC): the [[rusty bush lark]] (''Mirafra rufa'') and [[Gillett's lark]] (''Mirafra gilletti'') were found to be embedded in the genus ''[[Calendulauda]]''.<ref name=ioc/><ref name=alstrom2023/> Alström and collaborators proposed that the genus ''[[Mirafra]]'' should be split into four genera: ''Mirafra'', ''Plocealauda'', ''Amirafra'' and ''Corypha''.<ref name=alstrom2023/>

{{Clade | style=font-size:100%;line-height:100%
|label1='''Alaudidae'''
|1={{clade
   |label1=Certhilaudinae
   |1={{clade
      |1={{clade
         |1=''[[Alaemon]]'' – hoopoe-larks (2 species)
         |2={{clade
            |1={{clade
               |1=''[[Ammomanopsis]]'' – Gray's lark
               |2=''[[Chersomanes]]'' – larks (2 species)
               }}
            |2=''[[Certhilauda]]'' – long-billed larks (6 species)
            }}
         }}
      |2={{clade
         |1=''[[Eremopterix]]'' –  sparrow-larks (8 species)
         |2={{clade
            |1=''[[Pinarocorys]]'' – larks (2 species)
            |2={{clade
               |1=''[[Ramphocoris]]'' – thick-billed lark
               |2=''[[Ammomanes]]'' – larks (3 species)
               }}
            }}
         }}
      }}
   |2={{clade
      |label1=Mirafrinae
      |1={{clade
         |1=''[[Calendulauda]]''  – larks (8 species)
         |2={{clade
            |1=''[[Heteromirafra]]'' – larks (2 species)
            |2={{clade
               |1={{clade
                  |1=''[[Mirafra]]'' – larks (7 species)
                  |2=''[[Plocealauda]]'' – bush larks (5 species)
                  }}
               |2={{clade
                  |1=''[[Amirafra]]'' – larks (3 species)
                  |2=''[[Corypha (bird)|Corypha]]'' – larks (11 species)
                  }}
               }} 
            }}
         }}
      |label2=Alaudinae
      |2={{clade
         |1={{clade
            |1={{clade
               |1=''[[Lullula]]'' – woodlark
               |2=''[[Spizocorys]]'' – larks (7 species)
               }}
            |2={{clade
               |1=''[[Alauda]]'' – skylarks (4 species)
               |2=''[[Galerida]]'' – larks (7 species)
               }}
            }}
         |2={{clade
            |1={{clade
               |1=''[[Eremophila (bird)|Eremophila]]'' – horned larks (2 species)
               |2=''[[Calandrella]]'' – short-toed larks (6 species)
               }}
            |2={{clade
               |1=''[[Melanocorypha]]'' – larks (5 species)
               |2={{clade
                  |1={{clade
                     |1=''[[Chersophilus]]'' – Dupont's lark
                     |2=''[[Eremalauda]]'' – larks (2 species)
                     }}
                  |2=''[[Alaudala]]'' – short-toed larks (6 species)
                  }}
               }}
            }}
         }}
      }}
   }}
}}

=== Extant genera===
The family Alaudidae contains 102 extant species which are divided into 24 [[genera]]:<ref name=ioc>{{cite web| editor1-last=Gill | editor1-first=Frank | editor1-link=Frank Gill (ornithologist) | editor2-last=Donsker | editor2-first=David | editor3-last=Rasmussen | editor3-first=Pamela | editor3-link=Pamela C. Rasmussen | date=August 2024 | title=Nicators, Bearded Reedling, larks | work=IOC World Bird List Version 14.2 | url=https://www.worldbirdnames.org/bow/larks/ | publisher=International Ornithologists' Union | access-date=9 September 2024 }}</ref> For more detail, see [[list of lark species]].
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Image !! Genus   !! Living species
|-
|[[File:Greater Hoopoe Lark - Kutch, crop.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Alaemon]]''''' {{small|Keyserling & Blasius, 1840}}||
*[[Greater hoopoe-lark]] (''Alaemon alaudipes'')
*[[Lesser hoopoe-lark]] (''Alaemon hamertoni'')
|-
|[[File:Spike-heeled lark 2018 03 10 13 20 38 3271.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Chersomanes]]''''' {{small|Cabanis, 1851}}||
* [[Beesley's lark]] (''Chersomanes beesleyi'')
* [[Spike-heeled lark]] (''Chersomanes albofasciata'')
|-
|[[File:Gray's lark -4770 - Flickr - Ragnhild & Neil Crawford.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Ammomanopsis]]''''' {{small|Bianchi, 1905}}||
*Gray's lark (''Ammomanopsis grayi'')
|-
|[[File:Eastern Long-billed Lark (Certhilauda semitorquata) calling ... (30544868485), crop.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Certhilauda]]''''' {{small|Swainson, 1827}}||
* [[Short-clawed lark]] (''Certhilauda chuana'')
* [[Karoo long-billed lark]] (''Certhilauda subcoronata'')
* [[Benguela long-billed lark]] (''Certhilauda benguelensis'')
* [[Eastern long-billed lark]] (''Certhilauda semitorquata'')
* [[Cape long-billed lark]] (''Certhilauda curvirostris'')
* [[Agulhas long-billed lark]] (''Certhilauda brevirostris'')
|-
|[[File:Pinarocorys nigricans 189372404, crop.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Pinarocorys]]''''' {{small|Shelley, 1902}}||
* [[Dusky lark]] (''Pinarocorys nigricans'')
* [[Rufous-rumped lark]] (''Pinarocorys erythropygia'')
|-
|[[File:Alouette de Clot Bey Ramphocoris clotbey (cropped).jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Ramphocoris]]''''' {{small|Bonaparte, 1850}}||
*Thick-billed lark (''Ramphocoris clotbey'') 
|-
|[[File:Rufous-tailed Lark (Ammomanes phoenicurus) in Kawal WS, AP W IMG 2004.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Ammomanes]]''''' {{small|Cabanis, 1851}}||
* [[Desert lark]] (''Ammomanes deserti'')
* [[Bar-tailed lark]] (''Ammomanes cinctura'')
* [[Rufous-tailed lark]] (''Ammomanes phoenicura'')
|-
|[[File:Fisher's Sparrow-Lark - Tanzania 2008-03-01 0063 (16759772588).jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Eremopterix]]''''' {{small|Kaup, 1836}}||
* [[Black-eared sparrow-lark]] (''Eremopterix australis'')
* [[Madagascar lark]] (''Eremopterix hova'')
* [[Black-crowned sparrow-lark]] (''Eremopterix nigriceps'')
* [[Chestnut-backed sparrow-lark]] (''Eremopterix leucotis'')
* [[Ashy-crowned sparrow-lark]] (''Eremopterix griseus'')
* [[Chestnut-headed sparrow-lark]] (''Eremopterix signatus'')
* [[Grey-backed sparrow-lark]] (''Eremopterix verticalis'')
* [[Fischer's sparrow-lark]] (''Eremopterix leucopareia'')
|-
|[[File:Pink-breasted Lark - KenyaIMG 6762 (16740113947).jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Calendulauda]]''''' {{small|Blyth, 1855}}||
* [[Sabota lark]] (''Calendulauda sabota'')
* [[Pink-breasted lark]] (''Calendulauda poecilosterna'')
* [[Foxy lark]] (''Calendulauda alopex'')
* [[Fawn-coloured lark]] (''Calendulauda africanoides'')
* [[Karoo lark]] (''Calendulauda albescens'')
* [[Red lark]] (''Calendulauda burra'')
* [[Dune lark]] (''Calendulauda erythrochlamys'')
* [[Barlow's lark]] (''Calendulauda barlowi'')
|-
|[[File:Heteromirafra ruddi, Wakkerstroom, Birding Weto, a.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Heteromirafra]]''''' {{small|Grant, 1913}}||
* [[Rudd's lark]] (''Heteromirafra ruddi'') <small>([[Claude Henry Baxter Grant|Grant]], 1908)</small>
* [[Archer's lark]] (''Heteromirafra archeri'') <small>[[Stephenson Robert Clarke|Clarke]], 1920</small>
|-
|[[File:Red-winged Lark, crop.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Mirafra]]''''' {{small|Horsfield, 1821}}||
* [[Eastern clapper lark]] (''Mirafra fasciolata'')
* [[Cape clapper lark]] (''Mirafra apiata'')
* [[Red-winged lark]] (''Mirafra hypermetra'')
* [[Rufous-naped lark]] (''Mirafra africana'')
* [[Sharpe's lark]] (''Mirafra sharpii'')
* [[Flappet lark]] (''Mirafra rufocinnamomea'')
* [[Angola lark]] (''Mirafra angolensis'')
* [[Williams's lark]] (''Mirafra williamsi'')
* [[Monotonous lark]] (''Mirafra passerina'')
* [[Melodious lark]] (''Mirafra cheniana'')
* [[Singing bush lark]] (''Mirafra javanica'')
* [[Burmese bush lark]] (''Mirafra microptera'')
* [[Bengal bush lark]] (''Mirafra assamica'')
* [[Indochinese bush lark]] (''Mirafra erythrocephala'')
* [[Indian bush lark]] (''Mirafra erythroptera'')
* [[Jerdon's bush lark]] (''Mirafra affinis'') 
* [[Gillett's lark]] (''Mirafra gilletti'')
* [[Rusty bush lark]] (''Mirafra rufa'')
* [[Collared lark]] (''Mirafra collaris'')
* [[Ash's lark]] (''Mirafra ashi'')
* [[Somali lark]] (''Mirafra somalica'')
* [[Friedmann's lark]] (''Mirafra pulpa'')
* [[Kordofan lark]] (''Mirafra cordofanica'')
* [[White-tailed lark]] (''Mirafra albicauda'')
|-
|[[File:Lullula arborea (Ján Svetlík).jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Lullula]]''''' {{small|Kaup, 1829}}||
*[[Woodlark]] (''Lullula arborea'')
|-
|[[File:Pseudalaemon fremantlii -East Africa-8.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Spizocorys]]''''' {{small|Sundevall, 1872}}||
* [[Obbia lark]] (''Spizocorys obbiensis'')
* [[Sclater's lark]] (''Spizocorys sclateri'')
* [[Stark's lark]] (''Spizocorys starki'') 
* [[Short-tailed lark]] (''Spizocorys fremantlii'') 
* [[Masked lark]] (''Spizocorys personata'')
* [[Botha's lark]] (''Spizocorys fringillaris'')
* [[Pink-billed lark]] (''Spizocorys conirostris'')
|-
|[[File:Alauda arvensis 2.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Alauda]]''''' {{small|Linnaeus, 1758}}||
* [[White-winged lark]] (''Alauda leucoptera'')
* [[Raso lark]] (''Alauda razae'')
* [[Oriental skylark]] (''Alauda gulgula'')
* [[Eurasian skylark]] (''Alauda arvensis'')
|-
|[[File:Syke's Lark Galerida deva by Dr. Raju Kasambe DSCN5681 (2).jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Galerida]]''''' {{small|Boie, F, 1828}}||
* [[Sykes's lark]] (''Galerida deva'')
* [[Sun lark]] (''Galerida modesta'')
* [[Large-billed lark]] (''Galerida magnirostris'')
* [[Thekla lark]] (''Galerida theklae'')
* [[Crested lark]] (''Galerida cristata'')
* [[Malabar lark]] (''Galerida malabarica'')
* [[Maghreb lark]] (''Galerida macrorhyncha'')
|-
|[[File:Shore Lark.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Eremophila (bird)|Eremophila]]''''' {{small|F. Boie, 1828}}||
* [[Horned lark]] (''Eremophila alpestris'')
* [[Temminck's lark]] (''Eremophila bilopha'')
|-
|[[File:Red-capped lark, Calandrella cinerea, at Mapungubwe National Park, Limpopo, South Africa (23514690044).jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Calandrella]]''''' {{small|Kaup, 1829}}||
* [[Hume's short-toed lark]] (''Calandrella acutirostris'')
* [[Mongolian short-toed lark]] (''Calandrella dukhunensis'')
* [[Blanford's lark]] (''Calandrella blanfordi'')
* [[Rufous-capped lark]] (''Calandrella eremica'')
* [[Red-capped lark]] (''Calandrella cinerea'') 
* [[Greater short-toed lark]] (''Calandrella brachydactyla'')
|-
|[[File:Melanocorypha calandra.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Melanocorypha]]''''' {{small|F. Boie, 1828}}||
* [[Bimaculated lark]] (''Melanocorypha bimaculata'')
* [[Calandra lark]] (''Melanocorypha calandra'')
* [[Black lark]] (''Melanocorypha yeltoniensis'')
* [[Mongolian lark]] (''Melanocorypha mongolica'')
* [[Tibetan lark]] (''Melanocorypha maxima'')
|-
|[[File:Dupont's Lark, Morocco 1 (crop) (cropped).jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Chersophilus]]''''' {{small|Sharpe, 1890}}||
*Dupont's lark (''Chersophilus duponti'') 
|-
|[[File:Dunn's Lark.jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Eremalauda]]''''' {{small|WL Sclater, 1926}}||
*[[Dunn's lark]] (''Eremalauda dunni'')
*[[Arabian lark]] (''Eremalauda eremodites'')
|-
|[[File:Terrera marismeña (Calandrella rufescens) (8649673388) (2) (cropped).jpg|175px]]||'''''[[Alaudala]]''''' {{small|Horsfield & Moore, 1858}}||
* [[Athi short-toed lark]] (''Alaudala athensis'')
* [[Asian short-toed lark]] (''Alaudala cheleensis'')
* [[Somali short-toed lark]] (''Alaudala somalica'')
* [[Turkestan short-toed lark]] (''Alaudala heinei'')
* [[Mediterranean short-toed lark]] (''Alaudala rufescens'')
* [[Sand lark]] (''Alaudala raytal'')
|-
|}

=== Extinct genera===
* Genus ''[[Eremarida]]'' – (''Eremarida xerophila'')

==Description==
[[File:Chestnut-backed sparrow-lark (Eremopterix leucotis melanocephalus) male.jpg|thumb|A [[chestnut-backed sparrow-lark]]]]
Larks, or the family Alaudidae, are small- to medium-sized birds, {{convert|12|to|24|cm|1|abbr=on}} in length and {{convert|15|to|75|g|1|abbr=on}} in mass.<ref name = "Kikkawa"/> The smallest larks are likely the ''[[Spizocorys]]'' species, which can weigh only around {{convert|14|g|oz|abbr=on}} in species like the [[pink-billed lark]] and the [[Obbia lark]], while the largest lark is the [[Tibetan lark]].<ref>{{cite book |title=CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses |edition=2nd |editor-first=John B. Jr. |editor-last=Dunning |publisher=CRC Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-4200-6444-5}}</ref>

Like many ground birds, most lark species have long hind claws, which are thought to provide stability while standing.  Most have streaked brown plumage, some boldly marked with black or white. Their dull appearance [[camouflage]]s them on the ground, especially when on the nest. They feed on [[insect]]s and [[seed predation|seeds]]; though adults of most species eat seeds primarily, all species feed their young insects for at least the first week after hatching. Many species dig with their bills to uncover food.  Some larks have heavy bills (reaching an extreme in the [[thick-billed lark]]) for cracking seeds open, while others have long, down-curved bills, which are especially suitable for digging.<ref name = "Kikkawa"/>

Larks are the only passerines that lose all their feathers in their first [[moult]] (in all species whose first moult is known). This may result from the poor quality of the chicks' feathers, which in turn may result from the benefits to the parents of switching the young to a lower-quality diet (seeds), which requires less work from the parents.<ref name = "Kikkawa"/>

In many respects, including long [[bird anatomy|tertial feathers]], larks resemble other ground birds such as [[pipit]]s.  However, in larks the [[Tarsus (skeleton)|tarsus]] (the lowest leg bone, connected to the toes) has only one set of scales on the rear surface, which is rounded.  Pipits and all other [[songbird]]s have two plates of scales on the rear surface, which meet at a protruding rear edge.<ref name="Ridgway 1907"/>

===Calls and song===
Larks have more elaborate calls than most birds, and often extravagant [[bird vocalization|songs]] given in display flight.<ref name = "Kikkawa"/> These melodious sounds (to human ears), combined with a willingness to expand into [[Anthropogenic biome|anthropogenic]] habitats—as long as these are not too intensively managed—have ensured larks a prominent place in literature and music, especially the [[Eurasian skylark]] in northern Europe and the [[crested lark]] and [[calandra lark]] in southern Europe.

==Behaviour==
===Breeding===
Male larks use song flights to defend their breeding territory and attract a mate. Most species build nests on the ground, usually [[cup nest|cups]] of dead grass, but in some species the nests are more complicated and partly domed.  A few desert species nest very low in bushes, perhaps so circulating air can cool the nest.<ref name = "Kikkawa"/> Larks' [[bird egg|eggs]] are usually speckled. The size of the clutch is very variable and ranges from the single egg laid by [[Sclater's lark]] up to 6–8 eggs laid by the [[calandra lark]] and the [[black lark]].<ref name=hbw>{{ cite book | last1=de Juana| first1=Eduardo | last2=Suárez | first2=Francisco | last3=Ryan | first3=Peter | year=2004 | chapter=Family Alaudidae (Larks)  | editor1-last=del Hoyo | editor1-first=J. | editor2-last=Elliott | editor2-first=A. | editor3-last=Christie | editor3-first=D.A. | title=Handbook of the Birds of the World | volume=9: Cotingas to Pipits and Wagtails | place=Barcelona, Spain | publisher=Lynx Edicions | isbn=978-84-87334-69-6 | pages=496–541 }}</ref> Larks incubate for 11 to 16 days.<ref name = "Kikkawa"/>

==In culture==
===Larks as food===
Larks, commonly consumed with bones intact, have historically been considered wholesome, delicate, and light game. They can be used in a number of dishes; for example, they can be stewed, broiled, or used as filling in a meat pie. Lark's tongues are reputed to have been particularly highly valued as a delicacy. In modern times, shrinking habitats made lark meat rare and hard to come by, though it can still be found in restaurants in Italy and elsewhere in southern Europe.<ref name = "Hooper"/>

===Symbolism===
The lark in mythology and literature stands for daybreak, as in [[Geoffrey Chaucer|Chaucer]]'s "[[The Knight's Tale]]", "the bisy larke, messager of day",<ref>{{cite book | last=Benson | first=Larry D. | year=2008 | title=The Riverside Chaucer | edition=3rd | publisher=Oxford University Press | location=Oxford | isbn=978-0-19-282109-6 | page=45, line 1491 }}</ref> and [[William Shakespeare|Shakespeare]]'s [[Sonnet 29]], "the lark at break of day arising / From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven's gate" (11–12). The lark is also (often simultaneously) associated with "lovers and lovers' observance" (as in [[Bernart de Ventadorn]]'s [[Can vei la lauzeta mover]]) and with "church services".<ref>{{Cite journal | last=Bawcutt | first=Priscilla | date=1972 | title=The lark in Chaucer and some later poets | journal=Yearbook of English Studies | jstor=3506502 | volume=2 | pages=5–12 | doi=10.2307/3506502 }}</ref> These meanings of daybreak and religious reference can be combined, as in [[William Blake|Blake]]'s ''[[Visions of the Daughters of Albion]]'', into a "spiritual daybreak"<ref>{{ cite book | last1=Baine | first1=Rodney M. | last2=Baine | first2=Mary R. | title=The scattered portions: William Blake's biological symbolism | year=1986 | isbn=978-0-935265-10-1 | page=70 | publisher=Author }}</ref> to signify "passage from Earth to Heaven and from Heaven to Earth".<ref>{{cite book | last=Stevens | first=Anthony | title=Ariadne's Clue: A Guide to the Symbols of Humankind  | year=2001 | publisher=Princeton University Press | isbn=978-0-691-08661-3 | page=363 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=06We3O2BWVwC&pg=PA363 }}</ref> With Renaissance painters such as [[Domenico Ghirlandaio]], the lark symbolizes [[Christ]], with reference to [[Gospel of John|John]] 16:16.<ref>{{cite book | last=Cadogan | first=Jeanne K. | year=2000 | title=Domenico Ghirlandaio: artist and artisan | publisher=Yale University Press | isbn=978-0-300-08720-8 | page=215 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NGNEd9rplzcC&pg=PA215 }}</ref>

===Literature===
Percy Bysshe Shelley's famed 1820 poem "[[To a Skylark]]" was inspired by the melodious song of a skylark during an evening walk.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Sandy |first1=Mark |title=To a Skylark |url=https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=7305 |website=The Literary Encyclopedia |access-date=28 December 2020}}</ref>

English poet [[George Meredith]] wrote a poem titled "[[The Lark Ascending]]" in 1881.

In [[Mervyn Peake]]'s ''[[Titus Groan]]'', first book of the [[Gormenghast (series)|''Gormenghast'' trilogy]], "Swelter approache[s] [<nowiki/>[[Lord Sepulchrave]]] with a [[salver]] of toasted larks" during the reception following newborn [[Titus Groan (character)|Titus]]'s christening.

Canadian poet [[John McCrae]] mentions larks in his poem "[[In Flanders Fields]]".<ref>{{Cite web |last=McCrae |first=John |author-link=John McCrae |date=2023-02-25 |title=In Flanders Fields |url=https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47380/in-flanders-fields |access-date=2023-02-26 |website=Poetry Foundation}}</ref>

===Music===
English composer [[Ralph Vaughan Williams]] wrote a musical setting of George Meredith's poem, completed in 1914.  It was composed for violin and piano, and entitled ''[[The Lark Ascending (Vaughan Williams)|The Lark Ascending - A Romance]]''.  The work received its first performance in December 1920.  Soon afterwards the composer arranged it for violin and orchestra, in which version it was first performed in June 1921, and this is how the work remains best-known today.

The old Welsh folk song ''[[Marwnad yr Ehedydd]]'' (The Lark's Elegy) refers to the death of "the Lark", possibly as a coded reference to the Welsh leader [[Owain Glyndŵr]].

The French-Canadian folk song ''[[Alouette (song)|Alouette]]'' refers to plucking feathers from a lark.<ref>{{Cite web |title="Alouette!" |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/quotalouettequot-emc |access-date=2024-11-14 |website=www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca |language=en}}</ref>

===Pet===
Traditionally, larks are kept as [[Aviculture|pets]] in China. In Beijing, larks are taught to mimic the voice of other songbirds and animals. A traditional habit of the Beijingers to teach their larks 13 kinds of sounds in a strict order (called "the 13 songs of a lark", Chinese: 百灵十三套). The larks that can sing the full 13 sounds in the correct order are highly valued, while any disruption in the songs will decrease their value significantly.<ref>{{cite book | last=Jin | first=Shoushen | title=金受申讲北京 | year=2005 | publisher=Beijing Press | location=Beijing | isbn=978-7-200-05793-5}}</ref>

===Early awakening===
Larks sing early in the day, often before dawn,<ref>{{cite book |last1=T |first1=C. |title=Lessons derived from the animal world |date=1847 |page=269 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KBMEAAAAQAAJ |language=en}}</ref> leading to the expression "up with the lark" for a person who is awake early in the day,<ref>{{cite web |title=Up with the lark |url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/up-with-the-lark |website=Collins Dictionary |access-date=29 September 2022}}</ref> and the term ''[[Lark (person)|lark]]'' being applied to someone who habitually rises early in the morning.

==See also==
* [[Lark bunting]]
* [[Lark sparrow]]
* [[Magpie-lark]]—Neither a lark nor a magpie, but a giant [[monarch flycatcher]])
* [[Meadowlark]]
* [[Songlark]]
* [[Pipit|Titlark]], a synonym for [[meadow pipit]]

==References==
{{Reflist | refs = 
<ref name = "Hooper">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/feb/17/cat-dormouse-italian-recipes|title=Cat, dormouse and other Italian recipes | work=The Guardian | location=London | first=John | last=Hooper | date=2010-02-17 | access-date=2010-05-07}}</ref>
<ref name = "Kikkawa">{{cite book|last=Kikkawa|first=Jiro|chapter=Larks|editor=Perrins, Christopher|editor-link=Christopher Perrins|title=Firefly Encyclopedia of Birds|publisher=Firefly Books|year=2003|pages=[https://archive.org/details/fireflyencyclope0000unse/page/578 578–583]|isbn=1-55297-777-3|chapter-url-access=registration|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/fireflyencyclope0000unse/page/578}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
*{{ cite journal | last=Meinertzhagen  | first=R. | year=1951 | title=Review of the Alaudidae | journal=Journal of Zoology | volume=121 | issue=1 | pages=81–132 | doi=10.1111/j.1096-3642.1951.tb00739.x | ref=none}}

==External links==
{{Wikiquote|Larks}}
{{Commons category|Alaudidae}}
{{Wikispecies|Alaudidae}}
* [http://ibc.lynxeds.com/family/larks-alaudidae Lark videos, photos and sounds] - Internet Bird Collection

{{Larks IOC August2017}}
{{Larks eBird August2017}}
{{Larks Birdlife-HBW August2017}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q29858}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Alaudidae|*]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Nicholas Aylward Vigors]]