''The Karoo lark should not be confused with the similarly named Karoo long-billed lark.'' The Karoo lark (''Calendulauda albescens'') or red-backed lark is a species of

lark Larks are passerine birds of the family Alaudidae. Larks have a cosmopolitan distribution with the largest number of species occurring in Africa. Only a single species, the horned lark, occurs in North America, and only Horsfield's bush lark occ ...

in the family

Alaudidae Larks are passerine birds of the family Alaudidae. Larks have a cosmopolitan distribution with the largest number of species occurring in Africa. Only a single species, the horned lark, occurs in North America, and only Horsfield's bush lark occ ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to South Africa where its natural

habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...

is subtropical or tropical dry

shrubland Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominance (ecology), dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbaceous plant, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally o ...

Taxonomy and systematics

The Karoo lark was originally classified in the genus ''

Alauda ''Alauda'' is a genus of larks found across much of Europe, Asia and in the mountains of north Africa, and one of the species (the Raso lark) endemic to the islet of Raso in the Cape Verde Islands. Further, at least two additional species a ...

'' and subsequently ''

Mirafra ''Mirafra'' is a genus of lark in the family Alaudidae. Some ''Mirafra'' species are called "larks", while others are called "bush larks". They are all found in Africa except for the singing bush lark that is found through South Asia to Australi ...

'' and '' Certhilauda'', until moved to ''Calendulauda'' by the IOC in 2009. Not all authorities have followed this taxonomy change.

Subspecies

Four

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

are recognized: * ''C. a. codea'' - (

Smith Smith may refer to: People and fictional characters * Metalsmith, or simply smith, a craftsman fashioning tools or works of art out of various metals * Smith (given name) * Smith (surname), a family name originating in England ** List of people ...

, A, 1843): Originally described as a separate species in the genus ''

''. Found on the western coast of South Africa * ''C. a. albescens'' - ( Lafresnaye, 1839): Found in south-western South Africa * ''C. a. guttata'' - (Lafresnaye, 1839): Originally described as a separate species in the genus ''Alauda''. Found in western South Africa * ''C. a. karruensis'' - Roberts, 1936: Found in southern South Africa Formerly, some authorities considered both the dune lark (as ''Certhilauda albescens erythrochlamys'') and Barlow's lark (as ''Certhilauda albescens barlowi'') to be subspecies of the Karoo lark.

Gallery

file:Calendulauda albescens codea 1838, crop.jpg, ''C. a.'' subsp. ''codea'', illustrated by Andrew Smith, 1838 file:Calendulauda albescens guttata 1838, crop.jpg, ''C. a.'' subsp. ''guttata'', illustrated by Andrew Smith, 1838

References

External links

Species text
- ''The Atlas of Southern African Birds''
Karoo lark
Structured guide to the species in southern Africa Karoo lark Endemic birds of South Africa Karoo lark Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Alaudidae-stub