Appearance:

Very similar to Crested Lark, and identification can be very difficult in areas where both species occur. The much used streaked-breast character is not always relevant because of regional variations among the many subspecies of both Crested and Thekla. Then habitat, behaviour and voice becomes important for identification. A combination of the following characters should be used to tell it from Crested: Bill appears straight (because of convex lower mandible), crest fuller and not so pointed, belly less deep, back more heavily streaked , tail coverts rusty-brown in contrast to rump, underwing coverts greyish white (not rufous), upper breast with defined streaking ("done with marker pen"). Eye-stripe white behind eye. Will often perch atop of scrubs or bushes, unlike Crested, and usually prefers higher altitude habitats.

Sound:

Song: a mix of long whistling, warbling sounds, trills and mimicry. Full song very similar to Crested Lark. Rudiments of song are often heard and is less whistling than Crested. The contact call/alarm-call may be the best characteristic to separate it from Crested Lark where both species occur. Thekla Lark calls with 3-5 syllables, of which one is often drawn out and "hangs" while falling in pitch, giving it a melancholic feeling (diagnostic). The phrase has a more "bouncing" feel to it than Crested Lark.

Call and song (diagnostic call at time 08-11 sec.):

Distribution:

Xeno-canto: map

Ecology:

Birdlife ecology

Links:

Observation.org Latest observations

Video IBC

Image search Flickr NB! May give other species

Sound search at Xeno-canto

Featherbase

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Appearance:

Very similar to Crossbill, but has thicker neck, bigger head, hardly any forehead and deeper bill. Upper mandible is more curved towards the tip than in Crossbill, and the lower mandible is s-shaped with a "bulge". The tip of the lower mandible is seldom visible from behind the upper. The chest is deeper, and many birds have a front heavy appearance. Adult males shows most distinct characters of the species, and other sexes/ages may be difficult to identify because of overlapping characters with Crossbill. Plumage similar to Crossbill, with dark wings and tail. Males with rufous red head and body, females green. Juveniles greyish green with streaking. Posture less erect than Crossbill, which, together with short tail, contributes to the front heavy impression.

Sound:

Contact call similar to Crossbill's "chepp", but is on average deeper and lacks the "cut-off" ending of each call. In sum: Parrot Crossbill; hard attack, soft ending, Crossbill: softer attack, cut-off ending. The song consist of improvised, resonant twittering and series of contact calls with no apparent phrases. It is generally slower than in Crossbill, with marked pauses.

Song:

Distribution:

Xeno-canto: map

Ecology:

Birdlife ecology

Links:

Observation.org Latest observations

Video IBC

Image search Flickr NB! May give other species

Sound search at Xeno-canto

CC

Sounds:Recorded by Lauri Hallikainen http://www.xeno-canto.org/CC license