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Horned Lark

Silhouette LarksLarks
Horned LarkEremophila alpestris
  • ORDER: Passeriformes
  • FAMILY: Alaudidae

Basic Description

Look carefully at a bare, brown field, especially in winter, and you may be surprised to see it crawling with little brown shapes. When they turn, you may see a neat yellow face, black mask, and tiny black “horns” waving in the breeze. Horned Larks are widespread songbirds of fields, deserts, and tundra, where they forage for seeds and insects, and sing a high, tinkling song. Though they are still common, they have undergone a sharp decline in the last half-century.

More ID Info
image of range map for Horned Lark
Year-roundBreedingMigrationNonbreeding
Range map provided by Birds of the World
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Find This Bird

Horned Larks are small birds that live in large, empty fields—and they’re roughly the same color and size as a clod of dirt. To find them, look for the barest ground around and scan the ground carefully, watching for movement or for the birds to turn their black-and-yellow faces toward you. Also watch the air above open country for flocks of smaller birds flying in dense aggregations (sometimes numbering well into the hundreds, particularly in winter). From late winter into summer, listen for the high-pitched, thin, tinkling song, often given in flight display over suitable open habitats.

Other Names

  • Alondra Cornuda (Spanish)
  • Alouette hausse-col (French)
  • Cool Facts