Alaudala cheleensis
Silhouette: Gossipguy and T. Michael Keesey · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5%
The Asian short-toed lark (Alaudala cheleensis) is a lark in the family Alaudidae. The species was first described by Robert Swinhoe in 1871. It is found from south-central to eastern Asia. Formerly or presently, some authorities have considered the Asian short-toed lark to belong to the genus Calandrella or to be a subspecies of the lesser short-toed lark. Alternate names for the Asian short-toed lark include the Asiatic short-toed lark, eastern short-toed lark (a name also used by the steppe greater short-toed lark), grey short-toed lark, Mongolian short-toed lark (not to be confused with the species of the same name, Calandrella dukhunensis), salined lark and salt-marsh lark.
A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2020 compared the nuclear and mitochondrial DNA from the sand, Asian short-toed, and Mediterranean short-toed larks. The study analysed samples from 130 individuals that represented 16 of the 18 recognised subspecies. The resulting phylogenetic tree indicated that neither the Asian short-toed lark, nor the lesser short-toed lark as currently defined are monophyletic. Most of the subspecies were also found to be non-monophyletic. The authors... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park | 🇲🇳 Mongolia |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beijing | 🇨🇳 China |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Asian Short-toed Lark sighting in Beijing on a given day, based on 9 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 296th most-seen of the 324 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Asian Short-toed Lark in Beijing on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Asian Short-toed Lark sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Beijing, in our data
Beijing is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Asian Short-toed Lark sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Asian Short-toed Lark is recorded against all the birds logged in Beijing (9 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
