Rudd's lark (''Heteromirafra ruddi'') is a species 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 oc ...

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

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

. 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 high-altitude

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 ...

. It is threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

Taxonomy and systematics

left, Bird in flight at Wakkerstroom, South Africa Formerly, some authorities have classified Rudd's lark as belonging to the genus ''

Mirafra ''Mirafra'' is a genus of lark in the family Alaudidae. 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 lark ...

''. Previously, some authorities have also considered

Archer's lark Archer's lark (''Heteromirafra archeri''), also known as the Liben lark, is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae. It is found in Somalia, Somaliland and Ethiopia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry shrubland and subtrop ...

to be a subspecies of Rudd's lark (as ''Heteromirafra ruddi archeri''). Alternate names for Rudd's lark include long-clawed lark, Rudd's long-clawed lark and South African long-clawed lark. The name "long-clawed lark" has been used to describe both Rudd's lark and

References

External links

Species text
- ''The Atlas of Southern African Birds'' Rudd's lark Endemic birds of South Africa Rudd's lark Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Alaudidae-stub