About the Ashy-crowned Sparrow-Lark
The ashy-crowned sparrow-lark is a small sparrow-sized member of the lark family. It is found in the plains in open land with bare ground, grass and scrub across South Asia. The males are well marked with a contrasting black-and-white face pattern, while females are sandy brown, looking similar to a female sparrow. Males are easily detected during the breeding season by the long descending whistle that accompanies their undulating and dive-bombing flight displays.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
ID tip
Sparrow sized with a finch-like bill and short legs, these birds are usually seen sitting on the ground, and although they will sometimes perch on wires they do not perch in trees or bushes. The male is sandy brown overall with a black belly, chin, lower lores and eye stripe. The top of the head is ashy (although the base of these crown feathers are dark) unlike the dark brown to black in the black-crowned sparrow-lark which partly overlaps with the range of this species in the arid zone of India and Pakistan.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where it lives
When to see it
Peak activity in February · a variable species across most of its range
Easily confused with
Grey-backed Sparrow-LarkEremopterix verticalisThe grey-backed sparrow-lark or grey-backed finch-lark is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae.
Chestnut-backed Sparrow-LarkEremopterix leucotisThis is a small lark at 11 cm.
Fischer's Sparrow-LarkEremopterix leucopareiaFischer's sparrow-lark or Fischer's finch-lark is a species of passerine bird in the family Alaudidae.
Learn the Ashy-crowned Sparrow-Lark for real
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