Part 270

Bill stout, first primary very short; tertials shorter, or but little longer, than secondaries; tail moderate in length; two outer rectrices partly white as in Anthus; tarsus scutellate both in front and behind; claw of hind toe longer than the toe itself; upper plumage brown and the breast streaked.

Genera.

a1. Bill more slender; first primary minute, shorter than primary-coverts; claw of hind toe more than one-half the length of tarsus. ... Alauda (p. 674) a2. Bill much stouter; first primary longer than the primary-coverts; claw of hind toe not more than one-half the length of tarsus. ... Mirafra (p. 675)

Genus ALAUDA Linnæus, 1758.

Bill similar to that of Anthus, but stouter and blunter; nostrils protected by short feathers and several hairs; rictal bristles few and short; first primary shorter than primary-coverts; second primary nearly as long as third, which is equal to fourth; tertials slightly longer than secondaries; claw of hallux slender, nearly straight, and equal to more than two-thirds the length of tarsus.

689. ALAUDA WATTERSI Swinhoe.

FORMOSAN SKYLARK.

Alauda wattersi Swinhoe, Proc. Zool. Soc. (1871), 389; McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 103. Alauda gulgula Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1890), 13, 575 (part); Grant and Whitehead, Ibis (1898), 244 (eggs); Whitehead, Ibis (1899), 243 (nest).

Bohol (Everett, McGregor); Luzon (Möllendorff, Whitehead, McGregor, Bartsch); Sibuyan (McGregor); Ticao (McGregor). Formosa and the Pescadores.

Adult.--Upper parts blackish brown, streaked with ochraceous-buff; lores and superciliary stripe from bill to nape pale buff or whitish; ear-coverts dusky; malar region and sides of throat marked with small blackish spots; under parts white; chest buff with short blackish shaft-lines; sides and flanks buff, the latter obscurely streaked with dark brown; wing-feathers and rectrices dark brown, edged with cream-buff or ruddy buff; outermost pair of rectrices entirely white; the next pair with their outer webs white.

In freshly molted individuals the feathers of upper parts are rounded at the ends and fringed with white, producing a squamate appearance, which disappears as the plumage becomes worn; feathers of occiput somewhat lengthened forming a crest, and the feathers of sides of nape forming short ear-tufts.

A male in fresh plumage measures: Length, 150; wing, 85; tail, 54; culmen from base, 15; depth of bill at nostril, 5; tarsus, 23; hind toe with claw, 24. A female in worn plumage measures: Wing, 81; tail, 48; culmen from base, 13; depth of bill at nostril, 5; tarsus, 23; hind toe with claw, 22.

This species is very similar to the European skylark from which it is distinguished by its much smaller size.

Three eggs of the Formosan skylark from Isabela Province, Luzon, collected by Whitehead on May 25, 1894, are thus described:

"Shape ovate. Ground-color very pale greenish white, variously mottled and spotted with pale french-gray under-markings and brown upper-markings. In one egg the markings are chiefly concentrated into a zone round the middle of the shell; in the other two they are pretty equally scattered over the whole shell. Measurements 21 mm. by 16 mm."

A set of two eggs is "Much like the above and equally spotted all over, but the over-markings are of a more yellowish brown. Measurements 22 mm. by 15 mm.

"This lark was nesting in an open bit of country thinly covered with tufts of grass, beneath which the nests were concealed. Fully fledged young birds of this species were also observed on the same date." (Grant and Whitehead.)

Genus MIRAFRA Horsfield, 1821.

Bill very stout, almost finch-like, its depth at nostril almost as great as its length from nostril and equal to about two-thirds of the hind claw; nostrils exposed; rictal bristles short; tertials shorter than secondaries; first primary equal to one-third of the second, the latter about equal to the third, fourth, and fifth; hallux slightly shorter than its claw.

690. MIRAFRA PHILIPPINENSIS Ramsay.

PHILIPPINE BUSH LARK.

Mirafra philippinensis Ramsay, Ibis (1886), 160; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1890), 13, 605; Whitehead, Ibis (1899), 243; McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 103.

Luzon (Heriot, Möllendorff, Steere Exp., McGregor, Whitehead); Mindanao (Mearns); Mindoro (McGregor).

Adult.--Upper parts blackish brown, streaked with ochraceous-buff; superciliary line from bill to nape dark buff; cheeks and ear-coverts buff, speckled with black; chin and throat cream-buff; remainder of under parts dull ochraceous-buff, darker across the chest which is marked with small dusky spots; wing-feathers dark brown; quills ochraceous-buff on inner webs; primaries and their coverts edged with rusty buff on outer webs; secondaries and coverts edged with ochraceous-buff on outer webs; tertials edged with buff on both webs; outermost pair of rectrices with outer webs and most of the inner webs white; next pair with outer webs white half way to the shaft. Iris light brown; bill horn-color, lighter on lower mandible; feet and nails light flesh-color. A male from Luzon measures: Length, 140; wing, 70; tail, 46; culmen from base, 12; depth of bill at nostril, 65; tarsus, 21; hind toe with claw, 16. A female, wing, 68; tail, 42; culmen from base, 12; depth of bill at nostril, 6; tarsus, 21; hind toe with claw, 15.

In young birds in fresh plumage the feathers of the back are rounded at the tips and fringed with ochraceous-buff, and the spots on the chest are larger.

The Philippine bush lark is very abundant in the vicinity of Manila and great numbers have been noted in the markets in baskets with the equally common Formosan skylark.

Family FRINGILLIDÆ.

Bill conical (except in Loxia where the mandibles are crossed); commissure, or cutting edges of bill, angulated; nostrils basal and near the culmen, often hidden by antrorse feathers; rictal bristles moderate in length; wings well developed with only nine primaries; rectrices twelve, tail square or slightly forked; tarsus scutellate in front, covered on each side by a single plate, and with a sharp ridge behind.