Fun Horned Lark Facts For Kids

Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris) is a species of bird found in North America, Asia, and Europe. It has a brown-colored body with a white-colored breast with black patches.

It has a yellow or pale white face with a black stripe running down from the bill to below the eyes that looks like it is wearing a black mask. The most distinctive feature about the bird is a pair of black tufts in its head that look like horns, hence the name, Horned Lark.

Horned Larks are about 6.3-7.9 in (16-20 cm) in length, and they weigh around 1.0-1.7 oz (28 -48 gm); they are social birds and are known to live in flocks near the oceans. They use their song to attract mates or to communicate with other flocks.

They prefer open ground, prairies, airports, fields, and big lawns. They also migrate towards the south in winter.

Another fact about Horned Lark is that they walk or run while searching for food and sing songs during their flight or while they run.

Here, we have a lot of amazing and interesting fun facts about Horned Larks that you will enjoy. Let's take a look at these Horned Lark' facts and information, and if you enjoy these then, do read about other bird species such as golden oriole and western meadowlark for more amazing information.

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Horned Lark Interesting Facts

What type of animal is a Horned Lark?

Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris) is a species of bird of North America and is widespread among the open habitats of North America.

What class of animal does a Horned Lark belong to?

Horned Lark species belong to the Aves class of animal, like all other birds.

How many Horned Larks are there in the world?

Around 120 million Horned Lark species exist in the world.

Where does a Horned Lark live?

Horned Larks are known to live in open ground, fields, prairies, dry tundra, and the airport. They are situated in North America, Asia, and northern Europe.

What is a Horned Lark's habitat?

Horned Lark habitat ranges from big fields, open ground, prairies to airports and golf courses. Their habitat consists of plenty of insects and seeds to feed on, and they can nest in those places easily. They usually have a doorstep of pebbles.

Who do Horned Larks live with?

Horned Lark species are social birds. They live in flocks and often communicate with other flocks using their song. But some of them are solitary in nature in preferring to live alone rather than being part of the flock. While nesting, they live with their pair only and take care of their young ones.

How long does a Horned Lark live?

These birds of North America have a life span of eight years in the wild. It has the status of "Least Concern", so it does not have any danger in the wild.

How do they reproduce?

The male Horned Lark attracts females by circling above its territory for several minutes, performing a "song flight" then he dives straight towards the ground, and just before touching the ground, he opens his wings and lands swiftly. This Horned Lark flight is traditionally and famously accompanied by a Horned Lark song.

The Horned Lark nest is built by females in the male territory, where they then lay 3-4 eggs. Eggs hatch in around 10-12 days.

They often scare off other Horned Larks during the breeding season, and their breeding season comes around the spring.

What is their conservation status?

Horned Larks have the conservation status of Least Concern. This means that they do not face any grave threats and are out of danger. There are about 120 million Horned Larks alive today, and they migrate towards the gulf coast during winters and live about a year there.

Horned Lark Fun Facts

What do Horned Larks look like?

The Horned Lark species has a brown-colored body, Yellowish-white head, and black-colored stripe that starts from their bill and runs through the eyes and then downwards. On top of their head is a pair of tufts that looks like horns. Their breast is white with some patches on it.

Female Horned Lark is smaller in size and is comparatively dull in looks. It has grey color instead of black in some parts of its body.

How cute are they?

Horned Larks are considered cute because of their small size and appearance. Their appearance not only aids the Horned Larks in looking attractive, but it also helps them in hiding from their predators as their brown-colored body helps them camouflage with dry ground.

How do they communicate?

They communicate by singing high-pitched songs. Male Horned Lark is known to sing "song flight" to attract a female for mating. You can hear a Horned Lark call when it is performing the song flight to attract females.

How big is a Horned Lark?

A Horned Lark species has a wingspan of 12-13 in (31.12-35.56 cm) and is about 6.3-7.9 in (16-20 cm) in length. They consume grasshoppers as their food which are only 1-7 cm in length. This means that it is about thrice as big as its prey.

How fast can a Horned Lark fly?

Male Horned Larks can fly up to the height of 800 ft in order to perform the "song flight". They are quick runners, so they often walk on the ground rather than flying, so their speed has not been measured yet.

How much does a Horned Lark weigh?

A Horned Lark weighs only 1 oz-1.7 oz (28 gm-48 gm); this implies that they are considered light and agile in a family of birds.

What are their male and female names of the species?

Male and female do not have any separate names. They carry a common name which is a Horned Lark. However, you can identify between a male and a female by their appearance. Females are duller and more petite than males in size.

What would you call a baby Horned Lark?

A baby Horned Lark bird species is referred to as a chick. Chicks or young ones hatch after a period of 10-12 days, and the young ones leave their nest after 9-12 days of hatching, just before they learn how to fly.

What do they eat?

They are omnivores, so they eat both seeds and insects. Their diet consists of spiders, grasshoppers, ants.

They also eat snails as well as some berries and seeds of some plants, and some waste grain. Parents feed their young ones till they are ready to leave the nest, and some of them even get fed by their parents after leaving the nest.

Are they friendly?

Horned Larks are friendly birds. They live in flocks and often hunt in flocks. They even communicate with flocks of other Horned Larks using songs. There hasn't been any noted negative effects produced by Horned Lark on humans, but they help us by eating insects and functioning like pesticides for them.

Would they make a good pet?

Larks are kept as pets in China, they are thought 13 different types of songs, and if one sings all 13 in the correct order, its value increases a lot. But, Horned Larks are wild creatures, and their habitats are typically large fields, grasslands, savanna, and airports.

Did you know...

Horned Lark comes under the family of North American birds, and their breeding season comes around spring. They migrate towards the south in winter. Juvenile Horned Lark receives the care and love of both parents and leaves its nest after 9-12 days of hatching.

They search for food by covering the bare ground on foot instead of flying. They remain in flocks while searching for food, though the situation might change when it is nesting. Apart from Asia and Europe, they are found in Central, western, and eastern united states.

They use dry ground and fields as their nest site due to the color of their body as well as the nest blends in with the ground, which hides their nest from their predators and keeps them and their young ones safe. Their main threats are domestic cats, raccoons, and skunks.

Snow buntings are considered to be similar to Horned Lark, but the main difference between the two is the absence of a white wing patch in a Horned Lark female.

Various Horned Lark subspecies are Streaked Horned Lark, California Horned Lark, and Prairie Horned Lark.

Streaked Horned Lark has the conservation status of endangered species, while the horned lark has the conservation status of the Least Concern. The main reason behind their tag of endangered species is habitat loss.

Do Horned Larks migrate?

Horned Lark is known to be nesting in a habitat that includes open fields and a big ground as it helps them camouflage. But like other north American birds, they also migrate towards the south during the winter season and set up their nest there for the rest of the winter.

Which states can the Horned Lark be found in?

The Horned Lark live in North America, Northern Europe, and Asia. They perform nesting in eastern, western, and central United States, including Alaska, and in Southern and northern Canada.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other birds including palm warbler, or ovenbird.

You can even occupy yourself at home by drawing one on our Horned Lark coloring pages.