Taxonomy and Adaptation
The Archers Lark falls under the Passeriformes family, meaning “perching birds”. The genus that the Archer’s Lark is placed within is Alaudidae, meaning “larks”. The Archer’s lark is also known by scientific name (Heteromirafra archeri). The Archer’s Lark has adapted to its surroundings in a few ways. The birds coloring for one is mainly brown and red. This type of neutral coloring helps it conceal itself while traveling throughout the open grassland/rocky terrain that is their habitat. This is important because this bird is known to travel on the ground in place of flying most of the time. Also, the fact that the Archer’s Lark is extremely tiny, standing at just 14 cm plays a part in the adaptation to their environment because it is able to hide in small areas and scurry just under the thick grasslands from predators. It is quite obvious and sad to say at the same time that they were not able to adapt to the people and noxious plants that have invaded their homes. These factors had an impact on the species by cultivating and farming the Archer’s Lark habitat, shedding their protection and home from them . Another major characteristic, the long-claw of the lark, is so prominent, that in Somali this is what the bird is known for. It is hard to say exactly what this adaptation is used for because information on this lark is so sparse that their specific eating habits aren’t written about. It is possible that their long claws were used to dig out specific insects. Many larks eat small insects like worms or other land critters, along with eating small seeds. This is just a speculation when it comes to their diet and the adaptation of their long claws.
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