Calendulauda albescens
Silhouette: Gossipguy and T. Michael Keesey · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%
The Karoo lark (Calendulauda albescens) or red-backed lark is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae. It is endemic to South Africa where its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. The Karoo lark was originally classified in the genus Alauda and subsequently Mirafra and Certhilauda, until moved to Calendulauda by the IOC in 2009. Not all authorities have followed this taxonomy change.
Found on the western coast of South Africa Found in western South Africa Formerly, some authorities considered both the dune lark (as Certhilauda albescens erythrochlamys) and Barlow's lark (as Certhilauda albescens barlowi) to be subspecies of the Karoo lark.
Species text - The Atlas of Southern African Birds Karoo lark... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Coast National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
More parks will be added in future updates.
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Karoo Lark sighting in West Coast National Park on a given day, based on 105 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 116th most-seen of the 192 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July to September
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Karoo Lark in West Coast National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May–June, October and December–January, the lowest months. Those are among West Coast National Park's wettest months, with about 40 mm of rain a month against 5 mm in February.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Karoo Lark sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only West Coast National Park, in our data
West Coast National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Karoo Lark sightings: about 10% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Alaudidae
The closest relatives of the Karoo Lark that you can see in West Coast National Park (family Alaudidae, Larks) are Large-billed Lark (about 20%) and Red-capped Lark (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Karoo Lark is recorded against all the birds logged in West Coast National Park (105 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
