Horsfield's bush lark
Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Family
Genus
SPECIES
Mirafra javanica

Horsfield's bush lark (Mirafra javanica ) is a species of lark which inhabits grassland throughout most of Australia and much of Southeast Asia.

Appearance

Horsfield's bush lark is a small, thickset bird with a large head, a short, sparrow-like bill and a small crest which is only visible when raised. Its dorsal plumage colour is brown, reddish or sandy with darker central streaks to the feathers. The breast is mottled or streaked and it has a buff eyebrow. The underparts are pale, with a brown tail. The adult upper parts and crown are near black with coarse buff to russet streaking. Juveniles are similar but the crown and upper parts are neatly scaled by narrow white fringes to the feathers. Nestlings have dense natal down and contrasting dark spots on their tongue and mouth.

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The average lengths for the wing are 61–81 mm, tail 40–56 mm, bill 12–16 mm and weight 18–25 grams. The wings are short and rounded with a distinctive rufous panel. The innermost secondary feather is vestigial and of the ten primary feathers, p10 is very short but not vestigial. The primaries moult outward starting at p1 while the tail and body moult during the early stages of, or just before the start of the moult of the primaries.

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Distribution

Geography

The range of Horsfield's bush lark is very broad, with an estimated global extent of occurrence of 10,000,000 km2. In Australia, the bush lark occurs from the Eyre Peninsula, South Australia, through Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australia to Shark Bay. This species is a summer migrant to south-eastern continental Australia and vagrant to the island of Tasmania. In Australia they inhabit chenopod shrublands, native and exotic grasslands in temperate and tropical areas, coastal heathlands, dunes, mudflats and also modified open habitats such as crop and pastureland. They are found less commonly on playing fields, golf courses, road verges, salt marshes and other shrublands or heathland and rarely in treed habitats. 

Horsfield's bush lark habitat map
Horsfield's bush lark habitat map
Horsfield's bush lark
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Habits and Lifestyle

Bird's call

Diet and Nutrition

Bush larks are terrestrial and omnivorous foragers with a short, stout bill suited for crushing seeds. They eat mainly grass seeds and invertebrates, particularly insects during the breeding season. By gleaning and probing most food is taken from the ground surface or, just below. Mostly they forage alone, but sometimes are found in small parties.

Mating Habits

In Australia the bush lark is known to breed following significant rainfall in arid areas. They defend territory during the breeding season and both parents incubate and feed the nestlings and fledglings and remove faecal sacs. The young remain in the nest for up to 12–14 days or longer but if disturbed, may depart the nest at 7–8 days old before they are capable of flight. For almost a month after fledging they are dependent on the parents. Nesting success can be low with most losses from introduced mammalian predators.

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Of historical interest is an account written by ornithologist and former curator of the Australian Museum, Edward P. Ramsay. Published in the Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London in 1865 he described nidification of M. j. horsfieldii, "The nests of Mirafra horsfieldi are usually found during the months of November, December, and often as late as January and February. They are loose ragged structures, and not finished off nicely, like those of Anthus australis. They are cup-shaped, and are composed wholly of grasses, without any particular lining. The situation chosen is a little hollow scraped out by the side of a tuft of grass or straw, or behind a clod of earth; the front edge of the nest alone is smoothed down-the back part being left ragged, and often drawn forward as if to help to conceal the eggs. The nest is about 28 inches in diameter by 1 inch in depth. On the 4th of' February, 1861, we took a nest from a hay-field at M'Quarie Fields containing three eggs, which is the usual number. These are in length from 8 to 10 lines by from 6 to 7 in breadth, and of a light earthy brown, thickly marked over the whole surface with freckles of a much darker hue. Some specimens are darker in colour than others; and after a time the ground-colour becomes of a more yellowish tint, and the markings much duller and more indistinct."

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References

1. Horsfield's bush lark Wikipedia article - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horsfield's_bush_lark
2. Horsfield's bush lark on The IUCN Red List site - https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/103765775/112867456
3. Xeno-canto bird call - https://xeno-canto.org/705129

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