LARK, in Latin alauda : there are several species of lark ; what can distinguish their genus is that the hind digit is very long, that they sing while taking off and moreover their feathers are normally dirt-colored: but this last characteristic is not constant in all lark species, and is not specific to their genus, for it is found in sparrows and other birds.

The common lark is hardly larger than a house sparrow, however its body is a little longer; it weights an ounce and a half, and it is six inches long from the tip of the beak to the end of the feet. The tail is also as long as the feet. The wingspan is ten inches. The beak is about three-fourths of an inch long from the tip to the corner of the mouth. The upper part of the beak is black and sometimes horn colored, the lower part is almost whitish, the tongue is wide, hard and forked, and the nostrils are round. The feathers on the head are an ashy reddish color and the middle of the feathers is black; sometimes the bird ruffles them in the shape of a crest. The back of the head is surrounded by an ash-colored stripe that goes from one eye to the other. This type of stripe is of a paler color and less apparent on a common lark than on the woodlark . The chin is whitish, the throat yellow and peppered with brown spots, the back is the same color as the head, and the sides are a yellowish-red color. Each wing has eighteen large feathers; the outer edge of the first is whitish, and the other feathers on the wings are russet. The feathers between the sixth and sixteenth have a blunt tip, are jagged and whitish. The edges of the small feathers of the wing are an ash-red color. The tail is three inches long and is composed of twelve feathers; the two middle feathers are placed one on top of the other; they are brown and surrounded by a reddish white stripe. The two after on each side are brown, and with reddish white edges. The fourth is brown, except for the outer edge which is white. The outer barbs of the penultimate feather on each side are entirely white, like the tip. The rest of these feathers are brown; the last two on the outside are white and have a brown longitudinal stripe on the inner edges. The feet and digits are brown, the nails are black except for the white tips; the exterior digit starts out at the middle digit. The lark becomes very fat during moderate winters. It lays eggs three times per year, during the months of May, July, and August, and produces four or five eggs during a single lay. The bottom of its nest is made of dirt, it closes it with strands of grass; finally it raises its young in a short time. Willughbi . [1] Derham . [2] See Bird.

1. The reference is to British ornithologist Francis Willughby (1635-1672).

2. The reference is to William Derham (1657-1735), another student of Willughby’s mentor, John Ray. In 1718 Derham published posthumous letters by Ray relating to ornithology. See William Derham, Select Remains of the Learned John Ray, M.A. and F.R.S. with his Life, ed. George Scott (London, 1760).