Birds
Somali lark (Corypha somalica)
The Somali lark (Corypha somalica, formerly Mirafra somalica) is a lark found only in Somalia, in dry lowland grassland. It has two subspecies, one in the north and one in central Somalia, the second once treated as a separate species, Ash's lark. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.
In short
The Somali lark (Corypha somalica) is a lark, family Alaudidae, endemic to Somalia. Its natural habitat is dry tropical lowland grassland (IUCN Red List, Mirafra somalica, 2016). The IUCN estimates the area its range covers at about 270,000 km² (same source).
Names
The British ornithologist Harry Witherby described it in 1903 as Certhilauda somalica (Witherby, Certhilauda somalica n. sp., 1903, Biodiversity Heritage Library). It was later placed in the genus Mirafra. A large genetic study of the lark family by Per Alström and colleagues, published in 2023, moved it with several other species to the revived genus Corypha (Alström and others, "Systematics of the avian family Alaudidae", Avian Research, 2023; IOC World Bird List, larks). GBIF still lists it as Mirafra somalica (GBIF).
Other names for it include "Somali bushlark" and "Somali long-billed lark". The name "Somali lark" has also been used for Archer's lark and the russet lark (Avibase; Wikipedia, Somali lark, backup).
Two subspecies
The IOC World Bird List recognises two subspecies (IOC World Bird List, larks):
- C. s. somalica (Witherby, 1903): northern Somalia.
- C. s. ashi (Colston, 1982): central Somalia.
The second was described by Peter Colston in 1982 as a separate species, Mirafra ashi or Ash's lark, named for the ornithologist John Ash, who collected the specimen. It is now treated as a subspecies of the Somali lark on genetic and behavioural evidence and because both share the same type locality (Wikipedia, Somali lark, backup).
Records in Somali lands
The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) holds 22 records of the Somali lark from Somalia, dated from 1903 to 2024 (GBIF occurrence search, Somalia). By type: 12 museum specimens, 10 sightings by people.
Records that name a region (2 of 22), by region: Mudug 2 (same source).
The oldest dated record is a museum specimen from 1903, from a place recorded as "Dibbit, about 6%50' N., 47%30' E., Somaliland.", held by the Natural History Museum, London (GBIF record 1291474015).
The newest dated record is a sighting by a person from 2024, from a place recorded as "Owdweyne, Togdheer : Tuuyo Plains" (GBIF record 4862940675).
GBIF only holds what museums, scientists and observers have shared, so the counts show where the animal or plant has been recorded, not its full range.
Red List status
The IUCN Red List category for the Somali lark is Least Concern (IUCN Red List assessment; GBIF species page).
Classification
| Rank | Name |
|---|---|
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Aves |
| Order | Passeriformes |
| Family | Alaudidae |
| Genus | Mirafra |
| Species | Mirafra somalica |
Scientific name with author: Mirafra somalica (Witherby, 1903) (GBIF Backbone Taxonomy).
Related pages
Sources
Sources
- IUCN Red List, Mirafra somalica, 2016 · doi.org
- Witherby, Certhilauda somalica n. sp., 1903, Biodiversity Heritage Library · biodiversitylibrary.org
- Alström and others, "Systematics of the avian family Alaudidae", Avian Research, 2023 · doi.org
- IOC World Bird List, larks · worldbirdnames.org
- GBIF · gbif.org
- Avibase · avibase.bsc-eoc.org
- Wikipedia, Somali lark, backup · en.wikipedia.org
- GBIF occurrence search, Somalia · gbif.org
- GBIF record 1291474015 · gbif.org
- GBIF record 4862940675 · data.biodiversitydata.nl
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