Madagascar lark
species of bird
The Madagascar lark (Eremopterix hova) is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae endemic to Madagascar.
Taxonomy and systematics
The Madagascar lark was described by the German ornithologist Gustav Hartlaub in 1860, who placed it within the genus Mirafra. The specific name, hova, refers to the Hova, a caste in the precolonial Kingdom of Madagascar. It remained in the genus Mirafra until a 2013 study of the genetics of the family led by Per Alström unexpectedly found it was better placed in the genus Eremopterix, where it was moved to in 2014. The relationships of the Madagascar lark within this genus are not yet fully understood. Alternative names for the Madagascar lark include Hova lark, Madagascan bush lark, Madagascar singing bushlark, and Madagascar sparrow lark.
Description
The Madagascar lark is very similar to many of the other Mirafra larks to which it was formerly thought to be related. It is a small lark, 13 cm (5.1 in) long, with greyish-brown upperparts streaked with darker brown, and whitish below with blackish streaks or spots on the upper breast; the wings are dark brown with paler fringes on the primary and secondary feathers often visible as a pale panel on the closed wing, as in most Mirafra species. Unlike the other Eremopterix larks with their boldly patterned males, but again like Mirafra larks, it does not show any sexual dimorphism. The legs are pinkish-brown, and the bill pinkish or buffy with a greyer tip; the bill is fairly slender, again like Mirafra larks, not the thick finch-like seed-eating bill of the other Eremopterix larks.
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This entry incorporates text from “Madagascar lark” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.