Fischer's sparrow-lark (''Eremopterix leucopareia'') or Fischer's finch-lark is a species of

passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...

bird in the family

Alaudidae 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 occ ...

. It is found from central Kenya to eastern Zambia, Malawi and north-western Mozambique. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

is subtropical or tropical dry lowland

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...

. This inconspicuous dull-coloured bird somewhat resembles a finch. It can be distinguished from the similar

chestnut-headed sparrow-lark The chestnut-headed sparrow-lark (''Eremopterix signatus'') or chestnut-headed finch-lark is a species of passerine bird in the family Alaudidae. It is found in eastern and north-eastern Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dr ...

by the absence of a white patch on the crown of its head. It is found on short grass plains where it congregates in large flocks except during the breeding season. The common name of the bird commemorates the German explorer Gustav Fischer.

References

External links

Images and classification at the Animal Diversity Web
Fischer's sparrow-lark Birds of East Africa Fischer's sparrow-lark Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Alaudidae-stub