Appearance:

May be confused with Ruddy Shelduck, but differs in long, pinkish legs, pink bill, long neck, greyish underparts and striking, brown mask. Conspicuous black and white wing pattern similar to Ruddy Shelduck, but crossed with a thin, black stripe. Sexes similar. Immature duller and without facial mask, and thus closer to RS in appearance. Spends much time foraging while walking, but may also dive. Flight heavy and goose-like.

Sound:

Quite vocal when interacting. Female calls may resemble RS, but are coarser, harder and trills are more rolling. Single calls are longer, and falls markedly in pitch. Male calls quite different, with husky, wheezing or hissing "kaahhh", or with the same timbre in series lika a steam engine.

Male:

Distribution:

Wikipedia: map (se also Xeno-canto below)

Ecology:

Birdlife ecology

Links:

Observation.org Latest observations

Video IBC

Image search Flickr NB! May give other species

Sound search at Xeno-canto

Featherbase

CC

CC-photo:berniedup, Licence,Link.

CC-sound:Lars Lachmann, Licence,Link.

CC-photo:Björn S..., Licence,Link.

Appearance:

Small, compact lark with finch-like bill. 30% smaller than Skylark. Primaries almost completely covered by tertiaries, as opposed to Lesser Short-toed Lark. Upperparts typical lark-like, while underparts are almost unstreaked. Most individuals shows small, black shoulder patch. Bill deep, but pointed. Base colour variable, but western birds usually warmer brown than eastern. Lacks crest. Crown is rather flat (often rufous) and head squarish. Tail black with buff centre and pure white outer feathers. Often forms finch-like flocks when not breeding. Flight moderately undulating.

Sound:

Contact call a dry, short and House Sparrow-like "chirrrp", with a high-pitched component. Shorter than Skylark, and crisper and straighter than Lesser Short-toed Lark. Song usually performed high in the air, but can also be heard from the ground. 2 types of song. Either in short phrases with a typical duration of 1-3 seconds each, with stuttering introduction, and falling cadence. Other song type more confusing and harder to identify, consisting of a continuous stream of energic improvisation. Listen for interwoven contact calls, and lack of Lesser Crested Lark calls. Frequently mimicks other species.

Song:

Distribution:

Wikipedia: map (se also Xeno-canto below)

Ecology:

Birdlife ecology

Links:

Observation.org Latest observations

Video IBC

Image search Flickr NB! May give other species

Sound search at Xeno-canto

Featherbase

CC