Horned Larks don’t get a lot of respect but I’m a fan.
1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Two days ago I braved the biting gnats on Antelope Island and this singing male Horned Lark was one of my rewards. He was perched on a decaying old stump in an area of the island that few people visit. I’ve often thought that stump might make an aesthetically pleasing perch if I could ever find a cooperative bird perched on it and yesterday I finally succeeded. I’m not disappointed.
I’ve mentioned before that I have fond memories of Horned Larks going back to my growing-up days in Montana where they were the most common birds on the family farm. As a kid I didn’t even know what species they were but they seemed to be everywhere. I always saw them from a distance and to my untrained eye they just looked like another nondescript LBJ (little brown job) but I’ll never forget the first time I saw a male in breeding plumage up close.
I was inside dad’s “shop” (where we worked on farm machinery) and had just turned out the lights to leave when it landed on an old rusty anvil just outside the door that was slightly open. I was in deep shade inside so the bird couldn’t see me and I was very close. The lark started singing its delicate and musical song on the anvil and for the first time I really saw those subtly beautiful colors, distinctive facial markings and raised “horns”. I remember being both impressed by the bird and disappointed by my previous lack of observational skills.
I’ve been a fan ever since.
Ron
Lovely music. Glad you enjoyed it. Hope you didn’t get too badly bitten. Thanks, Ron
I’m a fan too. I only saw them on my visits to SE Texas before moving to Colorado. Now, it may be the most common bird on my birding trips. I like the singing pose, the perch, and the background. Viewing it while listening to Vaughan Williams’ “The Lark Ascending” provided by Marty was a reak treat.
Thanks, Dave. Marty often provides interesting and appropriate tidbits in her comments.
We had a bird in our yard today singing away. I was trying to figure what type of bird it was. I didn’t even think of the Horned Lark until I watched the video you provided. We so seldom get them in our yard, but they are in the hills near our home. Thanks Ron, and love your pic!
So, is that what it was?
I never did see the bird, but the song was the same.
Another unusual bird to see around here. Not sure I would recognize one without its horns erect. Definitely lbjish. Certainly a beautiful song and music.
Lyle, those horns do seem to disappear when they’re laying flat.
A subtle charmer – as so many of the lbjs are. Thank you. I played the link to the song and here (some hours before dawn) I am pleased to say it messed with the cat’s mind.
EC, in my experience a messed up mind is almost a permanent condition with cats…
Lovely shot with the stump and the slightly raised horns. Sandra’s Horned Lark clips brought to mind Vaughan Williams’ “The Lark Ascending.”
Thanks, Marty. Words bring different things to mind for different people. I’ve often wondered about the origin of this definition of lark – “a source of or quest for amusement or adventure”.
This species has a huge range. Labrador to Oaxaca. Surprising for a creature that has such a narrow, specific requirement set for nesting, feeding.
The epitome of biological success.
Cheerful song
Agreed.
Ron
the green of the branch below makes the yellow brighter. i can almost hear him in michigan. Thank you. Diana
Diana, as you might (barely) notice at the lower right there was another “green branch” that I cropped out. Perhaps I should have cropped the image a little looser to include more of it.
Very nice photo Ron. I have seen them here, but have never heard one singing. Fond memories indeed of your boyhood in Montana. A huge percentage of our kids growing up today with their bent over posture glued to their smart phones are sorely in need of a Montana farm upbringing.
Everett Sanborn, Prescott AZ
I particularly enjoyed your last sentence, Everett. So true.
The Horned Lark IS a pretty bird and it’s song is lovely… 🙂 I’m sure they’re around and just not noticed…..appears I need to pay more attention in the field than in the yard! 🙂 Stump DOES make a wonderful perch…… 🙂
I’m a little surprised you haven’t noticed them since I see so many of them about 100 miles north of you. I’m glad you like the stump as a perch. Thanks, Judy.
Stunning! This is a beautiful photo and the stump is perfect. Too bad there are not more of those out there! I am a fan also…their song is so welcoming! Sometimes these birds blend so well into their surroundings and can be so elusive that until you hear them you don’t know they are around.
Thanks, Kathy. Actually the origin of that stump puzzles me a little. There are very few trees on the island and none in this area. It seems too large in diameter for sagebrush. But it must be very old so who knows…
And now I’m remembering the song from Shakespeare’s play Cymbeline — “Hark, hark! the lark at heaven’s gate sings…” It’s a lovely photo, and a wonderful memory.
Thanks, Shoreacres. I wonder if the lark Shakespeare referred to was the Skylark. If they sing as prettily as Horned Larks I think the reference would be appropriate