(1218) Alauda gulgula herberti.
The Small Siam Sky-Lark.
Alauda arvensis herberti Hartert, Bull. E. O. C, xliii, p. 19 (1923) (Siam), Alauda gulgula. Blanf. & Oates, ii, p. 326 (part).
Vernacular names. Bee-lone (Burmese) ; Nok-kra-chob-fon (Siam).
Description. Above this is the darkest, yet least rufous of all the races of Alauda gulgula. It is nearest to A. g. wattersi and A. g. sala, differing from these in its much darker upper plumage but not in the extent of the striations on the breast and Hanks.
Colours of soft parts as in the other races.
Measurements. Wing 78 to 87 mm.; tail 47 to 54 mm.; tarsus 23 to 24 mm.; culmen 12 to 14 mm.
Distribution. Siam, Cochin China and also South-East Tenasserim. Oates's Alauda peguensis of Tenasserim and Pegu does not appear to be this form bur rather A. g. gulgula, which is found commonly in the North and West of that Province.
Nidification. The Siam Sky-Lark breeds in Central Siam from April to the end of July, nearly always placing its nest in the dry rice-fields under some extra thick patch of paddy stubble. The eggs number three or four and are like those of the gulgula group but have larger blotches and, as a series, are broader ovals. Fifty eggs taken by Williamson and Herbert average 20.5 x 16.0 mm.: maxima 22.3 X 16.5 mm.; minima 18.1 X 15.0 mm.
Habits. Those of the species. Keeps much to the rice-fields until these are inundated in the Bains, when they take to the higher, grass-covered lands. Both song and flight are said to be decidedly inferior to those of the European bird.
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