Steppe larks: description and habitat

The skylark is a large bird with a body weight of 52-67 grams and a length of about 20 centimeters, from a sparrow-like group, variegated from above, with a breast of sand color, with a thick, curved beak and strong paws. A distinctive sign of the bird is a double dark brown stain on the throat. Another sign is manifested during flights: snow-white extreme feathers, fringing wings. The male and the female are almost identical in appearance and size, so they are very difficult to distinguish even experienced poultry breeders.

Fans of delightful trills sing out the song of this bird. Steppe larks sing in flight, performing complex, high notes, very beautiful tunes. The song is sonorous and cracking, but pleasant on hearing. That's why birds are very popular among fans of living creatures.

Habitat

Steppe larks live in Russia, Ukraine, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Portugal, Libya and some other countries. They prefer steppe areas, fields with dense grass, cereal areas, choosing places warmed by the sun. Among the plants, wormwood, aster shaggy and bluegrass viviparous give a special advantage, arranging nests under them. In warm areas live year-round, often choosing these places for wintering.

Nesting Features

A nest of steppe larks from leaves of cereals, roots and stems of field grasses, in a pit under large grass bushes. Very rarely they can be seen in dry horse manure or under a stone. The female lays 3 to 6 eggs (which is extremely rare). They are spotty, dirty-green in color. Bird families are located at a distance of 100 meters from each other.

The female incubates eggs for slightly more than two weeks and then feeds the chicks as much as possible. A few months later, young birds are flocking to flocks, sometimes reaching up to 200 individuals, and wander in search of food. These folded groups remain until the flights. They are very noisy due to singing, sounding in the spring and on warm autumn days.

Food

Poultry farmers note that it has a specific feature of the steppe lark. What feeds a bird is a question that interests many. Flocks of birds destroy a huge number of harmful insects, protecting grass fields and seedlings of cereal crops. But the seeds of weeds preserve the ability to germinate in the litter. Thus, there is sowing of fields with weed grasses, clogging crops and spoiling the crop. The birds themselves do not touch grain cereals , eating only those grains that have fallen during collection or ripening.

If we sum up all these observations, then the scale will tip to the side, so the damage from harmful insects, destroying crops and ripe ears is undoubtedly more significant than the damage from weeds falling on fields and without the help of birds.

Feed on the steppe larks fallen on the ground with seeds of grasses and grains, finding them even under the snow. They consume such insects as food : locusts, leaf beetles, weevils, bug beetles, flies, ants, various caterpillars and spiders. The lark can get insects burying on the surface of the earth with its beak. This bird drinks fresh water, but is also seen on salty watering points.

Content in captivity

Steppe larks are one of the most beloved wild songbirds in poultry farmers. This is explained by the simplicity of their content. Grown by the master and lured from the hands, they quickly get used to the person. Brighten the loneliness of the bird will help the company of other larks, you can have another subspecies, which will reduce timidity and aggressiveness. To sing in captivity birds begin on the fourth day, from morning till late at night, they are well tolerated by electric lighting. It is necessary to ensure that conditions of detention are suitable for larks, otherwise they may get sick. Free access should always be clean water, so that birds do not feel thirsty.

What kind of cage to buy?

Steppe larks, the description of which indicates that the cells for the content are better to choose with high bumps and a soft roof, and also necessarily with a sliding bottom, do not like discomfort. A soft roof is needed so that the bird does not break its head because of the habit of sharply soaring up in fright. At the bottom of the cell, pure sand is poured about 15 centimeters thick, large stones and pieces of wood are laid out.

These birds almost never sit on branches and bushes. Larks are fed with grain mixtures without hemp seeds, fresh and dry ant eggs, grated carrots, low-fat cottage cheese, breadcrumbs. Feed first poured on the sand, as the birds do not immediately get used to the feeders. They delight their hosts with songs about 10 years old with the right content. Dull in the spring and, as a rule, unexpectedly and very quickly. People who want to buy birds, but do not know what a steppe lark looks like, the photo will help you figure it out.

The touching image of this bird is also reflected in literature, ringing singing is described in the stories of Turgenev and the poems of Alexei Tolstoy. And the Dagestani writer Kulunchakova has a story "Steppe Lark" in which she compares with this bird strong and strong-willed women fighting for the right to love and be loved.