GALERITA CRIS TATA, SoU,
GALERITA CRISTATA
Crested, Lark.
Alauda eristata, Lion. Syst. Nat., tom. i. p. 288.
galerita, Pall. Zoog. Ross.-Asiat., tom. i. p. 524.
undata, GmeL edit. Linn. Syst. Nat., tom. i. p. 797.
Galerida eristata, Boie, Isis, 1828, p. 321.
— viarnm, Brehra, Vög. Deutsch!., p. 315.
— undata, Boie, Isis, 1828, p. 321.
Lullula eristata, Kaup, NatürL Syst., p. 92.
Heterops cristatus, Hodgs. in Gray’s Zool. Misc., 1844, p. 84.
Galerita eristata, Cab. Mils. Hein., Theil i. p.. 125.
How remarkably defined is the limit o f the range o f some species ot birds! a eh»i» of *4 «& gmuar
breadth, a narrow strait, or a river of moderate width frequently forming » iKHmdar* they
o r very seldom pass. ' In Australia, in the physical condition o f which the band of mna 1m» t f t s a d had 1W*
alteration, many instances o f this kind occur; and in Europe, where science and agriculture bare played so
important a part in altering the fo c e ^ f the country, the restrictions are almost as permanent as ever, w e
Nightingale is not, nor ever has been, found in the British Islands to the south-west of Dorset, or to the
north of Yorkshire, neither does the Grouse proceed southward o f the Bristol Channel. I cite thefflkwo
instances out o f many, before proceeding to the history o f a bird which forms a still more striking example M
o f this sharply defined limit to its range. Every visitor from this country to the neighbouring tringdam of
France, who takes an interest in birds, must have observed, when strolling towards the interior d r the
country from Calais or Boulogne, that within the distance of a mile he has risen from the dusty road one,
two, or more pairs o f the Crested L a rk ; yet on our side o f the channel it very rarely occurs; so seldom,
indeed, is it to be seen here, that twenty years may elapse before the most diligent observer can say he has
met with it. A few solitary individuals have, however, favoured us with their presence; and for this reason
we give the species a place in the * B irds o f Great Britain.’
Mr. Rodd, in his ‘ Guide to the Ornithology of Cornwall,’ states that “ two examples were obtained m
September 1846,from the road-side between Penzance and Mammon.- Attention was draw« to the birds by
the melodious character o f tUpjr chirp, resembling more the flute-like tones o f the '* «mk&u* ttom the
song of our common SkylarE’’ Another specimen was observed, and suWqoeotly ««*»*$4 ’?> Mr. •?. N
Millett, o f Penzance, in the latter part o f October 1850. Besides these, Mr. G. D. IUr*ky that «ft
Sjissmle was “ brought in by a bird-catcher, from near Shoreham, in Sussex, a lk e m the October
* 863/' and he had reason to believe th at more'were passing over during the autumn o f *H*t y w .
On the continent the Crested Lark frequents France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and -Spain, while Turkey
Greet*. Asia Minor, Sicily, Crete, and Egypt claim it as one of the commonest birds o f their avifauna*; ami
it appears to be numerous in North Africa, Palestine, Persia, Scinde, Afghanistan, and India. Mr. Taytur
states that it is excessively abundant in Egypt—so much so, that he regarded it and the Molacilla alba du
most numerous o f all the small birds in that country. In the Eastern Atlas Mr. Salvia found it “ abmwfeM
in all the plains, both in Tunis arid the Salt-lake country. In the latter districts it was breediue u the
month of May, but some -eggs were obtained in April. The plains appear to be most frequented, hut it
j)V n0 IWCans an iin u s u a P o S r^ n c e to find it in the mountains and rocky passes.”
" Mr. Jordan informs us that “ it is found throughout the whole of India, but is most abundant in the north
and north-western provinces; it is rare in the Carnatic, not in Malabar, more common in the Deccan, and
thence spreading from Bebar, in the east,' to Scinde and the Ponjab, where it is very numerous. It b «ot
" ; “ known i„ Bengal nor in the Himalayas, nor in the countries to, the eastward. It prefers ilry and open
santlv plains t o ploughed Jand, to grass, wet meadows, or estivation. In winter it may be
$ v parties or sometimes in considerable flocks, occasionally on rojgjs and barren places. The nest is described
I f as formed of a little grass in a hole in the ground, and the eggs as four in »umber, of a yellowish white,
g uniformly freckled with greyish yellow and a neutral tint. It is frequently caged in all pam of the country,
5 [ and the bird is kept in darkness by several layers of cloth wrapped round the cage, the custom being to
| wrap an additional cover round the cage every year. In this state it sings wry sweetly, and learns to
f I imitate most exactly the notes of various other birds and of animals, such as the yelping ot a dog, the
niciviii" of a cat, the call of a hen to her chickens, &c."
Although the bird is stated to be generally dispersed over the son Europe, it appears not to occur
in all parts of it; for it is not included in Count Salvador,'» * t e A ig u e ot the B.rds of Sard,urn, and its