Alauda arvensis
Alauda arvensis
The Eurasian skylark is distributed throughout the Palearctic, extending from the Atlantic coast of Europe to the Pacific coast and Japan (BirdLife International, 2024). In Europe, it occupies almost the entire continent, except the far north of Russia (Donald, 2004; Keller et al., 2020). In Spain, it is found only on the peninsula and is absent from the Balearic and Canary Islands, Ceuta, and Melilla (Purroy, 1997; Martí and Del Moral, 2003; Molina et al., 2022). It occupies almost all bioclimatic zones but is more frequent in the supramediterranean, montane, and alpine zones (Pérez-Granados et al., 2016).
In Madrid, it is mainly distributed across the northern half of the region, especially in the mid- and high-altitude areas of the Sierra de Guadarrama, as well as some agricultural areas in the eastern and southeastern zones (Díaz et al., 1994).
Within the national park, the breeding population is located in the highest areas without tree cover, along the summits and adjacent slopes with grasslands and scattered shrubland. Its largest area of occupancy extends along the Cuerda Larga, from the Puerto de Navacerrada to the Puerto de Canencia and slightly north of it, and along the ridge connecting Peñalara to the Puerto de Fuenfría, also spreading to the summits east of Peñalara.
During the breeding season, the Eurasian skylark generally occurs in high-altitude grasslands and shrublands, sometimes exceeding 2,000 m. It also uses agricultural areas (dryland crops and herbaceous fields), but always at mid to high elevations. Although it does not primarily prefer agricultural habitats, it utilizes them for new colonizations and low-density breeding, making it a very abundant species in the Iberian Peninsula due to the extensive availability of these landscapes (Pérez-Granados et al., 2016).
Within the national park, its highest densities are found in pastures above 1,500 m a.s.l., as well as in grasslands interspersed with mountain shrubland, and to a lesser extent in denser shrub areas and rocky zones.
At a global scale, the Eurasian skylark is classified as Least Concern (LC; 2018). In Europe, it would also fall under the same category (LC; 2021). In Spain, however, it is considered Vulnerable on the 2021 Red List due to observed population declines and, to a lesser extent, reductions in its area of occupancy.
The Madrid Regional Catalogue of Threatened Species (1992) does not list this species under any threat category.
BirdLife International 2024. IUCN Red List for birds. https://datazone.birdlife.org.
Donald, P. F. 2004. The Skylark. T&AD Poyser. London.
Díaz, M., Martí, R., Gómez-Manzaneque, Á. y Sánchez, A. 1994. Atlas de las aves nidificantes en Madrid. Agencia de Medio Ambiente y SEO/BirdLife. Madrid.
Keller, V., Herrando, S., Voříšek, P., Franch, M., Kipson, M., Milanesi, P., Martí, D., Anton, M., Klvaňová, A., Kalyakin, M. V., Bauer, H.-G. y Foppen, R. P. B. (eds.). 2020. European Breeding Bird Atlas 2: Distribution, Abundance and Change. European Bird Census Council y Lynx Edicions. Barcelona.
Martí, R. y Del Moral, J. C. (eds.) 2003. Atlas de las aves reproductoras de España. Ministerio de Medio Ambiente y SEO/BirdLife. Madrid.
Pérez-Granados, C., Serrano-Davies, E., Hervás, I. y Herranz, J. 2016. Alondra común–Alauda arvensis. En Salvador, A. y Morales, M. B. (eds.): Enciclopedia Virtual de los Vertebrados Españoles. Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales. Madrid.
Purroy, F. J. (ed.) 1997. Atlas de las aves de España (1975-1995). SEO/BirdLife y Lynx Edicions. Barcelona.
Molina, B., Nebreda, A., Muñoz, A. R., Seoane, J., Real, R., Bustamante, J. y Del Moral, J. C. (eds.). 2022. III Atlas de las aves en época de reproducción en España. SEO/BirdLife. Madrid.