Lark Apk
Shanae Maerz
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 occurs in Australia. Habitats vary widely, but many species live in dry regions. When the word "lark" is used without specification, it often refers to the Eurasian skylark (Alauda arvensis).[1]
The family Alaudidae was introduced in 1825 by the Irish zoologist Nicholas Aylward Vigors as a subfamily Alaudina of the finch family Fringillidae.[2][3] Larks are a well-defined family, partly because of the shape of their tarsus.[4] They have multiple scutes on the hind side of their tarsi, rather than the single plate found in most songbirds. They also lack a pessulus, the bony central structure in the syrinx of songbirds.[5] They were long placed at or near the beginning of the songbirds or oscines (now often called Passeri), just after the suboscines and before the swallows, for example in the American Ornithologists' Union's first check-list.[6] Some authorities, such as the British Ornithologists' Union[7] and the Handbook of the Birds of the World, adhere to that placement. However, many other classifications follow the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy in placing the larks in a large oscine subgroup Passerida (which excludes crows, shrikes and their allies, vireos, and many groups characteristic of Australia and southeastern Asia). For instance, the American Ornithologists' Union places larks just after the crows, shrikes, and vireos. At a finer level of detail, some now place the larks at the beginning of a superfamily Sylvioidea with the swallows, various "Old World warbler" and "babbler" groups, and others.[8][9] Molecular phylogenetic studies have shown that within the Sylvioidea the larks form a sister clade to the family Panuridae which contains a single species, the bearded reedling (Panurus biarmicus).[10] The phylogeny of larks (Alaudidae) was reviewed in 2013, leading to the recognition of the arrangement below.[11][12]
The genus level cladogram shown below is based on a molecular phylogenetic study of the larks by Per Alstrm and collaborators published in 2023. The subfamilies are those proposed by the authors.[13] For two species the results conflict with the taxonomy published online in July 2023 by Frank Gill, Pamela Rasmussen and David Donsker on behalf of the International Ornithological Committee (IOC): the rusty bush lark (Mirafra rufa) and Gillett's lark (Mirafra gilletti) were found to be embedded in the genus Calendulauda.[12][13] Alstrm and collaborators proposed that the genus Mirafra should be split into four genera: Mirafra, Plocealauda, Amirafra and Corypha.[13]
Larks, or the family Alaudidae, are small- to medium-sized birds, 12 to 24 cm (4.7 to 9.4 in) in length and 15 to 75 g (0.5 to 2.6 oz) in mass.[14] The smallest larks are likely the Spizocorys species, which can weigh only around 14 g (0.49 oz) in species like the pink-billed lark and the Obbia lark, while the largest lark is the Tibetan lark.[15]
Like many ground birds, most lark species have long hind claws, which are thought to provide stability while standing. Most have streaked brown plumage, some boldly marked with black or white. Their dull appearance camouflages them on the ground, especially when on the nest. They feed on insects and seeds; though adults of most species eat seeds primarily, all species feed their young insects for at least the first week after hatching. Many species dig with their bills to uncover food. Some larks have heavy bills (reaching an extreme in the thick-billed lark) for cracking seeds open, while others have long, down-curved bills, which are especially suitable for digging.[14]
Larks are the only passerines that lose all their feathers in their first moult (in all species whose first moult is known). This may result from the poor quality of the chicks' feathers, which in turn may result from the benefits to the parents of switching the young to a lower-quality diet (seeds), which requires less work from the parents.[14]
In many respects, including long tertial feathers, larks resemble other ground birds such as pipits. However, in larks the tarsus (the lowest leg bone, connected to the toes) has only one set of scales on the rear surface, which is rounded. Pipits and all other songbirds have two plates of scales on the rear surface, which meet at a protruding rear edge.[4]
Male larks use song flights to defend their breeding territory and attract a mate. Most species build nests on the ground, usually cups of dead grass, but in some species the nests are more complicated and partly domed. A few desert species nest very low in bushes, perhaps so circulating air can cool the nest.[14] Larks' eggs are usually speckled. The size of the clutch is very variable and ranges from the single egg laid by Sclater's lark up to 6-8 eggs laid by the calandra lark and the black lark.[16] Larks incubate for 11 to 16 days.[14]
Larks, commonly consumed with bones intact, have historically been considered wholesome, delicate, and light game. They can be used in a number of dishes; for example, they can be stewed, broiled, or used as filling in a meat pie. Lark's tongues are reputed to have been particularly highly valued as a delicacy. In modern times, shrinking habitats made lark meat rare and hard to come by, though it can still be found in restaurants in Italy and elsewhere in southern Europe.[17]
In Mervyn Peake's Titus Groan, first book of the Gormenghast trilogy, "Swelter approache[s] [Lord Sepulchrave] with a salver of toasted larks" during the reception following newborn Titus' christening.
English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams wrote a musical setting of George Meredith's poem, completed in 1914. It was composed for violin and piano, and entitled The Lark Ascending - A Romance. The work received its first performance in December 1920. Soon afterwards the composer arranged it for violin and orchestra, in which version it was first performed in June 1921, and this is how the work remains best-known today.
Traditionally, larks are kept as pets in China. In Beijing, larks are taught to mimic the voice of other songbirds and animals. It is an old-fashioned habit of the Beijingers to teach their larks 13 kinds of sounds in a strict order (called "the 13 songs of a lark", Chinese: 百灵十三套). The larks that can sing the full 13 sounds in the correct order are highly valued, while any disruption in the songs will decrease their value significantly.[25]
Larks sing early in the day, often before dawn,[26] leading to the expression "up with the lark" for a person who is awake early in the day,[27] and the term lark being applied to someone who habitually rises early in the morning.
November 5, 2008 at 04:05 AM Does anybody know anything about Lark Brand violins? All I know is that it comes from China because there are Chinese characters in addition to the English text on the label. Any info is greatly appreciated.
November 5, 2008 at 02:01 PM Lark is a name brand of one of many, many Chinese companies that also possibly have other brands on the market. It is often difficult to track down the company itself, as the violins are made by various processes in a series of different factories. You will possibly discover most luthiers are adamant in their opinions as to the inferior qualities of Chinese violins. As I agree they cannot be compared to a "master" instrument, which can run in the price range of $5000.00 and up, one cannot understimate the economic value of the Chinese instrument. Imagine that you give a student, or your child, particularly a young one, a very valuable violin and it ends up as a wreck due to a child's lack of understanding of the value of things. If the violin is considered "disposable" one rests a little more easier. In addition, the access to cheap and affordable violins is the fact that the child may not really be serious about playing. It is very difficult to get a good return price on a master instrument, as depreciation has occured by ownership and possible wear. Not all Chinese instruments are poorly made, and I have several that are comparable to finer violins. Most people cannot tell the difference and it seems to be the furthest thing from thier minds as they are enjoying the music for the music's sake.
If the violin is for you, and you are just learning, it makes a fine tool for proper introduction to the violin, without morgaging the house. Make certain, if you don't know how to do it, to see that the set up is done properly. The violins are usually shipped with the bridge removed. This is obviously a saftey precaution. The bridge ( and often the nut ) will have to be fitted properly and a good luthier can do this for you. This will render the violin playable and you will be surprised at the sound after you have played it for awhile. I set my instruments up for my taste and have so for over 17 years. I have learned much from professional luthiers and trial and error. It is how one learns.
I find them useful for many reasons. I am a professional and have possessed some fine instruments in the past. For personal religious reasons I no longer possess items of any considerable value. I would never consider keeping such valuables in my own possession, even if it were the opposite case. Often it comes down to a social status issue which I do not practice nor condone. Factors such as theft and damage would be highly probable and I live in an enviroment where robbery is very common. I don't worry much about break-ins as I do about street theft. Thieves who see a person with a violin case, or any instrument case,at that, tend to believe the instrument is some sort of rare treasure and usually will go on that instinct and commit a crime. I have experienced it too often, where I quietly stand and deliver, and usually catch the culprit afterwards by their own ignorance and common mistakes.
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