Obbia Lark

Description 

12 cm long 

12-16 grams 

Dark eye stripe  

Dark malar stripes  

Small pale spot on forehead immediately above the bill on some individuals  

The tail is brown at the center with the rest of the tail being a dark blackish-brown sometimes with a narrow white edge 

Whitish underparts with regular blackish streaks on breast and flanks 

Brown eyes  

Stout, arched bill that is mostly brown with a paler yellow base (Birds of the World) 

Brown upperparts and crown streaked with dark shades of brown  

Whitish supercilium extending in front and behind the eye that does not always reach the bill and is sometimes divided vertically to make two halves  

Dark line through the eye  

Double moustachial streak on each side of the face  

White throat   

Most feathers on the tail are dark brown that sometimes show a trace of white along the outer feathers   

Pale patch above the bill in some birds 

Pink or dull flesh-brown legs (Ash, 1981) 

The Obbia Lark is similar in appearance to other species such as the Flappet Lark (Mirafra cinnamomea) which is buffy below and the Singing Bushlark (Mirafra cantillans) that has a rufous wing panel, longer tail, and dark on the bill (IUCN Red List) 

Breeding 

Six nests were found between June 8 and July 12, 1979 north of Uarsciek and Mogadishu and in Gezira  

Nests had a maximum of 2 eggs  

3 pairs were seen collecting food from June 28-29 and July 14, 1979 with the eggs being laid in May, June, or July  

Further breeding might occur in November-December to coincide with some years of good rain (Ash, 1981) 

Nests were located on the southeast side of a thin plant on dunes with sparse vegetation 

These nests have little shade or are partly hidden under the thin cover of creeping vegetation  

Most nests were close to the sea 50 m above the high-water line (Birds of the World) 

The nests found were cup-shaped or saucer-shaped with varying depths and made from dry rootlets, leaves, withered vegetation, and seeds (Ash, 1981) 

Behavior 

According to observers, the Obbia Lark likes to work in pairs  

Very active  

Groups of 30 birds are common  

Obbia Larks adopt a "hunched attitude" that reminds one of finches when they are feeding  

This lark is unique for running a lot and clambering over low vegetation  

Hard to observe in open terrain with strong monsoon winds where there is low-level driven sand and bright sunlight (Ash, 1981) 

Habitat 

The Obbia Lark’s range consists of coastal plains in central and southeastern Somalia where the bird is known to inhabit a narrow coastal strip close to 570 km of coastline from Halhambe to 47 km south of Jiriiban (IUCN Red List) 

Likes sand dunes close to the sea as well as rolling plains with patches of low, heavily grazed, halophytic scrub and herbaceous growth  

The Obbia lark has been seen alongside the Crowned Lapwing (Vanellus coronatus), Kittlitz's Sand Plover (Charadrius pecuarius), Cream-Colored Courser (Cursorius cursor), Little Tern (Sterna albifrons), Red-Winged Bush Lark (Corypha/Mirafra hypermetra), Somali Long-Billed Lark (Corypha/Mirafra somalica), Lesser Hoopoe Lark (Alaemon hamertoni), Short-Crested Lark (Galerida theklae), White-Fronted Sparrowlark (Eremopterix nigriceps), and Malindi Pipit (Anthus melindae) but no observations were recorded of this species interacting with any of them in its habitat (Ash, 1981) 

Other Information 

Life span- 3.8 years (IUCN Red List) 

Movement and diet are unknown 

This species vocal behavior is mostly unknown other than what observers have noted about the tip-tip call that the bird supposedly makes when flying (Birds of the World) 

The Obbia Lark is classified as Data Deficient by the IUCN that did its most recent assessment in 2016. This classification is due to lack of data and recent surveys that make it difficult to assess the conservation status of this species. This species is thought to have a restricted range to about 1 km wide in the south and 40 km inland in the north of Somalia. The extent of occurrence of the Obbia Lark is 71800 km². Even though the population has never been quantified, this species is suspected to be declining due to habitat loss as a result of coastal development and overgrazing. It has been theorized that the Obbia Lark might have some tolerance for heavily grazed habitat. Nonetheless, there has been increased grazing pressure as well as firewood collecting in the vegetated dunes that this species depends on (especially around Mogadishu). The state of these dunes as suitable habitat remains unknown (IUCN Red List).

Until further surveys are done in Somalia, much about this species’ habits, future, and state of its habitat will remain a mystery.

The Obbia Lark was first described by H.F Witherby from a single specimen collected at Obbia on the east coast of northern Somalia on January 12, 1903. Two specimens (male and female) were collected on September 15-16, 1962 at Uarsciek. From these specimens, the Obbia Lark was thought to exist in a narrow coastal strip in the southern part of their range.

From 1978-1980, J.S Ash and J.E Miskell surveyed many areas in Somalia to observe the Obbia Lark. Their route extended 30 km south of Mogadishu at Hal Hambo to 74 km north of Adale. They successfully found many Obbia Larks in their journey that even included observations on their nesting and breeding behavior. They noted that Obbia Larks were very common towards Obbia and 4 km east of Harardere but they did not see any members of this species beyond Obbia. Ash and Miskell did not cover 170 km of coastline due to obstacles. It is possible that the Obbia Lark also exists in this unsurveyed terrain. The two did not think the Obbia Lark would be further north since the bird was not found at Eil, Hafun Bay, Tohen, Zeila, Berbera, Mait, Alula, Merca, Brava, Kismayu, or Kiamboni. Ash and Miskell drew a map detailing which sites they investigated. You can see the map here. According to the map, the Obbia Lark was seen between Obbia and Harardere, north of Adale and between Adale and Hal Hambo going southwards. They did not see the bird further north of Obbia or further south than Hal Hambo. Their findings suggest that the Obbia Lark has a range that comprises a narrow coastal belt 570 km long from Obbia in the north to just south of Mogadishu. The total area is 1,500 km² (Ash, 1981).

The last sighting of the Obbia Lark was in April 2006 when several pairs were seen in Ceel Dheer and Mareeg (Birds of the World). 

The Ash and Miskell expedition was the last detailed survey concerning the Obbia Lark in Somalia. Since there have been no detailed surveys since then, it is hard to tell how much of the habitat in the sites they surveyed are still intact and whether or not Obbia Larks are still common in those areas.

The main challenge is that so much is unknown about the Obbia Lark. The second challenge is the rise of overgrazing and coastal development near the vegetated dunes that this species depends on. The last challenge is the political instability in Somalia that makes any survey in the country next to impossible.

When the political situation in Somalia stabilizes, a detailed survey should be done using the same route to investigate the same sites examined by Ash and Miskell in the late 1970s. The goal should be to see how much of the coastal dune habitat still remains and whether Obbia Larks are still common in those areas.

Order: Passeriformes 

Family: Alaudidae 

Genus: Spizocorys 

Species: Spizocorys obbiensis* 

*Formerly known as Calandrella obbiensis