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Red-winged lark

Species of bird From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Red-winged lark
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The red-winged lark (Corypha hypermetra) is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae found in eastern Africa. It was formerly treated as conspecific with the Kidepo lark.

Quick Facts Conservation status, Scientific classification ...
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Taxonomy and systematics

The red-winged lark was formerly placed in the genus Mirafra. It is one of several species that were moved to the resurrected genus Corypha based on the results of a large molecular genetic study by the Swedish ornithologist Per Alström and collaborators that was published in 2023.[2][3]

The red-winged lark is taken to form a species complex with the allopatric[4] rufous-naped lark, and perhaps with the Somali lark. The name "red-winged lark" is sometimes used as an alternate name for the Indian bush lark. The alternate names red-winged bush lark and rufous-winged bush lark may also be used to describe the Indian bush lark or the Bengal bush lark respectively.[5][6]

Subspecies

Two subspecies are recognized:[2]

  • C. h. gallarum (Hartert, EJO, 1907) – Ethiopia
  • C. h. hypermetra (Reichenow, 1879) – south Somalia to northeast Tanzania

This species and the Kidepo lark (Corypha kidepoensis) were formerly treated as conspecific. The Kidepo lark was elevated to species status based on results of a comprehensive integrated study of the genus Corypha that was published in 2024.[2][7]

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Description

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Rufous-naped (left) and Red-winged larks by Henrik Grønvold

It is a larger version of the rufous-naped lark, with a more robust bill and longer tail,[8] but their morphological and vocal features do not intergrade where they occur together.[9]

Distribution and habitat

It has a patchy but quite extensive range in equatorial eastern Africa. It occurs within Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda, and its estimated global extent of occurrence is 660,000 km2.[1] Its total population has yet to be quantified, but is believed to be large.[1]

Its natural habitat is savanna[8] in tropical to subtropical dry, open, lowland.

References

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