When I first took up birding as a hobby a few years ago the only bird I knew with "lark" in its name was a Meadowlark. All others would possibly get classified as thing-a-ma-larks. I had seen Meadowlarks often while growing up in Kentucky and quickly recognized them when I took up birding as an adult in Utah. I discovered there were actually two types of Meadowlarks in the US when I looked up Meadowlark in my first field guide--the Eastern and the Western. Other than geographic location, I'm not sure I'd know the difference between the two if I saw them in the field.
Meadowlarks are permanent residents in Utah. They are skittish birds and usually fly away quickly as humans approach. However, I was able to get rather close to a few from inside my truck when I introduced my older brother to birding a couple of years ago during one of his visits to Utah. I pulled off to the side of the road and he said, "Look how yellow that one is!" It was as if he had REALLY seen a Meadowlark for the first time in his 50-some years on this beautiful earth.
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| Western Meadowlark Springville, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Western Meadowlark Antelope Island State Park Davis County, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Western Meadowlark Utah County, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Western Meadowlark Utah County, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Western Meadowlark Utah County, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
The next Lark thingie I discovered in Utah was the Horned Lark. Horned Larks are abundant in the open spaces of Utah's Sagebrush-dotted deserts. I've stopped by one of my favorite open-ground birding areas on my may home from work a couple of times recently and photographed some Horned Larks. They spend a great deal of time on the ground or flying low over the ground.
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| Horned Lark Utah State Flight Park Lehi, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Horned Lark Utah State Flight Park Lehi, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
The images below were captured during a trip to Antelope Island State Park in Davis County, Utah. They show the typical, low-to-the-ground perch as well as the way they dart from one location to another while keeping low to the ground.
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| Horned Lark Perched on Small Ground Rock on Antelope Island State Park Davis County, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Horned Lark Perched on Small Ground Rock on Antelope Island State Park Davis County, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Horned Lark From One Rock Perch to Another on Antelope Island State Park Davis County, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
Horned Larks are seen during all seasons of the year in Utah. They will gather in large flocks during winter months and forage for plant seeds in and around the open desert and agricultural fields.
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| Horned Lark on Farmland Near Howell, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Horned Lark Preparing to Eat Seed in Eagle Mountain, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
The last image for Horned Lark shows a bird trying to stay atop a stake as a gust of wind came through and nearly knocked him off his perch. Wings, feet, and tail took instinctive actions to hold him in position.
I have to say that the Lark Sparrow is always a welcomed sight when spring arrives. These distinctively patterned sparrows winter in California, Texas, and Mexico. Some pick Utah for their spring and summer breeding grounds. I captured the images below on my way home from work today when I drove by the Utah State Flight Park just outside the city of Lehi.
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| Lark Sparrow in Lehi, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Lark Sparrow in Lehi, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Lark Sparrow in Lehi, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Lark Sparrow in Lehi, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Lark Sparrow in Lehi, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
Last but not least, we come to the final Lark thingie expected in Utah--the Lark Bunting. The typical location for spotting one would be in the extreme northeast corner of Utah during the summer months as the migrate from the extreme lower portions of Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Mexico to parts on the eastern side of the Rocky Mountain range. I've never looked for them in their expected range, but I have seen a few in the southwest corner of Utah and the west side of the Utah and Salt Lake Valleys. Those were lucky sightings as vagrants were migrating. The bird below was found near the city of St George. It is a male Lark Bunting transitioning into breeding plumage.
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| Vagrant Male Lark Bunting Transitioning to Breeding Plumage near St George, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
I captured the images below from quite a distance. I wanted to get the best shot I could to document the sighting for others. I was able to get a perched shot and then a flight shot as it flew to a more distant location.
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| Vagrant Male Lark Bunting in Breeding Plumage Near Tooele, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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| Vagrant Male Lark Bunting Near Tooele, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper) |
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