Sabota Lark
Calendulauda sabota
A medium-sized, streaky lark with a strong white eyebrow that gives it a capped appearance and a bold face pattern that is emphasized by a white crescent under the eye and strong moustachial streaks. The heavily streaked breast contrasts with a plain whitish belly and throat. The western races in South Africa’s Northern Cape and in Namibia have heavier, longer bills than their eastern counterparts. Pairs are resident in Karoo shrubland and arid savanna, preferring grassy areas. In spring and summer, the male sits up on a prominent perch singing a rich, melodious, variable song that often includes imitations of other birds. The Sabota Lark lacks the rufous wing panel present in Fawn-colored, Flappet, and Rufous-naped Larks.
Taxonomy
Formerly, the Sabota lark was classified as belonging to the genus Mirafra until moved to Calendulauda in 2009. Not all authorities have followed this re-classification. Two distinctive taxa of this species are respectively known as the large-billed Sabota lark and small-billed Sabota lark. The large-billed subspecies are found in the dry to arid west and south of its range, while the small-billed subspecies are native to mesic woodlands of the north and east.<p>Nine subspecies are recognized:
- Scientific name
- Calendulauda sabota
- Authority
- (Smith, A, 1836)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Alaudidae
- Genus
- Calendulauda
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- rising
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Mussau Flycatcher
Myiagra hebetior
Male is entirely glossy black with a slightly erect crest. Female red on the back and pale whitish buff below, with a bicolored head: pale throat and head black to below the eye. On New Britain, female is dusky gray below and on the throat. Prefers primary forest and undisturbed second growth. Song is a series of loud, piercing whistles. Call is a buzzing nasal churr.
Gray Silky-flycatcher
Ptiliogonys cinereus
Not a flycatcher, but related to Phainopepla, this elegant, long-tailed bird is fairly common but local in foothills and highlands. Typically perches upright, often on prominent perches. Usually seen in flocks at fruiting trees and shrubs or in flight high overhead, calling. Note the tufted crest, broken white eyering, and blue-gray (male) to dusky gray (female) plumage with variable yellow on the belly and under the tail, which, as seen from below, has a broad white band across the base.
Martial Eagle
Polemaetus bellicosus
A massive eagle with a short but prominent crest. The adult is uniformly brown on the head, back, and chest, with a pale belly covered in brown blotches. In flight the underwings are brown. Either solitary or in pairs, it inhabits woodland, plains, and semi-desert, where it hunts for vertebrates. Martial Eagles have extremely keen eyesight and can locate prey from six kilometers away. They hunt mostly on the wing and surprise prey from above. Juvenile Martial and Crowned eagles are similar, but Martial has whitish (not buffy) underparts, unspotted flanks, and narrower bars on the tail.
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