![\"lark](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/lark-sparrow-2565b-ron-dudley.jpg\")
\u00a01\/3200, f\/8, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon<\/em> EF500mm f\/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\nLark Sparrows have an affinity for\u00a0shrub-steppe sagebrush\/greasewood habitat which proliferates on the lower slopes of the island and I love seeing them on their sagebrush perches after those lovely gray\/green leaves come out. To be truthful, by this time of year I’m becoming a little weary of the clusters of\u00a0bare vertical\u00a0sagebrush stems in my images.<\/p>\n
This bird was so sleepy that it could barely keep its eyes open – this is one of\u00a0the\u00a0relatively few images I could get where they weren’t half or completely closed. Perhaps it was still recovering from migration…<\/p>\n
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![\"lark](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/lark-sparrow-2220-ron-dudley.jpg\")
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\u00a0\u00a01\/5000, f\/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon<\/em> EF500mm f\/4L IS II USM +1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n But this one had more energy and channeled some of it into song. Lark Sparrow singing bouts occur at all hours of the day and into late evening and a single singing session may last an hour or more (I had to smile as I typed\u00a0that last sentence\u00a0because there’s been a robin singing in the dark\u00a0from within two feet of my window for the last hour and it’s very loud!). Their song\u00a0is a jumble of rich and melodious notes and trills which range in pitch and volume, interspersed with less melodious buzzes and churrs. Three songs can be heard here<\/a> if you’re interested.<\/p>\n My fascination with Lark Sparrows is due in part to some of their unique behaviors. Courtship in the species differs markedly from that of all other songbirds in that males perform a turkey-like strut with their tail held upright\u00a0and wings dropped to the ground as they flash white tail spots to the female. And in an impressive display of multitasking and concentration, during copulation the male passes a twig to the female – a behavior known in no other passerine.<\/p>\n I’ve photographed that behavior and posted about it in the past (that post can be seen here<\/a>)\u00a0but one of my goals is to do so again. That would make my day!<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Lark Sparrows are a gift to the eye and ear. Their distinctive harlequin face pattern of black, white and chestnut combined with the melodious, rich trills of their lark-like song makes me long for the return of the species to Antelope Island every spring. <\/p>\n