''Mirafra'' is a genus of
lark
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 ...
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 ...
. Some ''Mirafra'' species are called "larks", while others are called "bush larks". They are found from Africa through South Asia to Australia.
Taxonomy and systematics
The phylogeny of larks (Alaudidae) was reviewed by Alström et al. (2013) who found that the following species form a well supported monophyletic group, which is the sister lineage to
Heteromirafra.
Extant species
The genus contains twenty-four species:
Former species
Some authorities, either presently or formerly, recognize several additional species as belonging to the genus ''Mirafra'', including:
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Short-clawed lark
The short-clawed lark (''Certhilauda chuana'') or short-clawed bush-lark, is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae. It is found in Botswana and South Africa. Its natural habitat is dry savannah.
Taxonomy and systematics
Originally, the short ...
(as ''Mirafra chuana'')
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Dusky lark
The dusky lark (''Pinarocorys nigricans''), also known as the dusky bush lark or rufous-rumped bush lark, is a species of migratory lark in the family Alaudidae. It is native to the southern Afrotropics.
Range
It is found in southern Central Af ...
(as ''Mirafra nigricans'')
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Rufous-rumped lark
The rufous-rumped lark (''Pinarocorys erythropygia'') is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae. It is found in western and central Africa from Mali, Guinea and Sierra Leone to eastern Sudan, South Sudan and north-western Uganda. Its natural h ...
(as ''Mirafra erythropygia'' or ''Mirafra nigricans erythropygia'')
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Indian desert finch-lark (as ''Mirafra phoenicuroides'')
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Rufous-tailed lark
The rufous-tailed lark (''Ammomanes phoenicura''), also sometimes called the rufous-tailed finch-lark, is a ground bird found in the drier open stony habitats of India and parts of Pakistan. Like other species in the genus it has a large finch-li ...
(as ''Mirafra phoenicura'')
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Madagascan lark (as ''Mirafra hova'')
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Sabota lark (as ''Mirafra sabota'')
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Bradfield's lark (as ''Mirafra naevia'')
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Pink-breasted lark (as ''Mirafra poecilosterna'')
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Foxy lark (as ''Mirafra alopex'')
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Masai fawn-coloured lark (as ''Mirafra intercedens'')
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Fawn-coloured lark (as ''Mirafra africanoides'')
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Karoo lark (as ''Mirafra albescens'' or ''Mirafra nivosa'')
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Red lark (as ''Mirafra burra'')
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Dune lark (as ''Mirafra erythrochlamys'')
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Barlow's lark (as ''Mirafra erythrochlamys barlowi'')
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Rudd's lark (as ''Mirafra ruddi'')
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Archer's lark (as ''Mirafra archeri'')
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Sidamo lark (as ''Mirafra sidamoensis'')
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Ngaundere sun lark (as ''Mirafra strümpelli'')
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Uele sun lark (as ''Mirafra bucolica'')
References
Alaudidae
Bird genera
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
{{Alaudidae-stub