PYRRHULAUDA AUSTRALIS.
middle one longer than either by the last jo in t; hinder toe shorter than the
shortest of the anterior ones, the claws nearly straight, that of the hinder toe
longer and stronger than any of the others.
DIMENSIONS.
Inches. Lines. Inches. Lines.
Length from the point of the hill to Length of the tarsus ........................ 0 ^2
the tip of the tail ............ 5 0 the outer toe •.................... 0 2f
of the bill ............................... 0 5 the middle toe.................... 0 31
of the wings when folded..... 3 2 the hinder toe.................... 0 2-i
of the tail ............................ 2 2 the hinder toe and claw... 0 4<£
Female.—Above dull rufous streaked with umber-brown, particularly on the
head and neck ; beneath rusty white, the breast mottled with umber-brown
stripes ; eye-brows white ; ear coverts brown ; the outer vanes of the two
lateral tail feathers, together with a portion of the inner vane of the outermost
adjoining the shaft, and the tips of both cream-yellow. The young bird
exhibits nearly the same colours as the female, only most of the feathers of
the upper parts are margined with dull rusty white, and the brown stripes on
the breast are less defined.
In the year 1829, when I proposed to institute a new ornithological group under the title of
P y r r h u la u d a , I was only acquainted with one bird (the present), which I regarded as possessing
typical characters. Since that period I have had opportunities of studying three other species,
—two of South Africa and one of India,—all of which go to confirm the propriety of the division
proposed. The figure of these birds and a few of their habits assimilate them to the Fringillince,
while the majority of their habits, together with several points in the structure of individual
parts, and the disposition of some of their colours, indicate their closer approximation to
Alaudinee. Temminck, by looking to their form, has classed them as Finches, while on the
other hand Lafresnaye,* by regarding the structure, &c. of individual parts, has maintained
their place to be with the Larks, in which view he is supported by Lichtenstein, who esteems
them as Larks, and closely allied to Callendulle, M ir a f r a and L ’A lo u e tte ba'eleuse of Levaillant.
If it be a law of nature that every principal group shall consist of a series of subordinate
ones, each of which shall have its representative in some other principal groups, then we may
view P y r r h u la u d a as the group of Fringillince, representing one of those of A la u d in a ; but
on the contrary, if su.ch be not a law, then we must concur with the last-named authors in
placing P y r r h u la u d a as a group of Alaudince.
The present species is gregarious, and flocks of several hundred individuals are often seen
upon the plains bordering the Orange River. It rises into the air, and after soaring for a time,
descends again like the larks, and like them also it builds its nest upon the ground, under the
shelter of a tuft of grass or some dwarf shrub. For more of its habits, see remarks to the
other species.
* Magazin de Zoologie, par Guerin, 1833.