| Dupont's Lark | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Alaudidae |
| Genus: | Chersophilus Sharpe, 1890 |
| Species: | C. duponti |
| Binomial name | |
| Chersophilus duponti (Vieillot, 1820) |
|
The Dupont's Lark (Chersophilus duponti) is the only lark in the genus Chersophilus.
Contents |
Like most other larks, Dupont's Lark is an undistinguished looking species on the ground. It is 17–18 cm long, slim, with a long neck, long legs and a fine slightly curved bill. It has a thin pale crown stripe and a dark-streaked breast.
Dupont's Lark was originally described by Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot in 1820.[2] This bird was named after the French naturalist Leonard Puech Dupont, who was the first to collect a specimen.
There are two races. C. d. duponti of Europe and northwest Africa is mainly brown-grey above and pale below. C. d. margaritae, which occupies most of the rest of the African range, has rufous upperparts.
It breeds across much of north Africa, from Algeria to Egypt, and in Spain and France.[1] It is a non-migratory resident.
This is a very shy species, which runs for cover when disturbed.
This is a bird of open sandy semi-desert or steppe with some grass. Its nest is on the ground, with 3-4 eggs being laid. Its food is seeds and insects.
Its song is a nasal whistle, given mainly at dawn and dusk or at night.