The horned lark (Eremophila alpestris)
The specific alpestris is Latin and means "of the high mountains", from Alpes, the Alps.
The horned lark was originally classified in the genus Alauda.
The horned lark Is suggested to have diverged from Temnick's lark around the Early-Middle Pleistocene, according to genomic divergence estimates.[3][4] The Horned lark is known from around a dozen localities of Late Pleistocene age, including those in Italy,[5] Russia, The United Kingdom and the United States. The earliest known fossil is from the Calabrian of Spain, around 1–0.8 million years old. In 2020 a 46,000 year old frozen specimen was described from the Russian Far East.
Recent genetic analysis has suggested that the species consists of six clades that in the future may warrant recognition as separate species. A 2020 study also suggested splitting of the species, but into 4 species instead, the Himalayan Horned Lark E. longirostris, Mountain Horned Lark E. penicillata, Common Horned Lark E. alpestris (sensu stricto), alongside Temnick's Lark..
The horned lark (Eremophila alpestris)
The specific alpestris is Latin and means "of the high mountains", from Alpes, the Alps.
The horned lark was originally classified in the genus Alauda.
The horned lark Is suggested to have diverged from Temnick's lark around the Early-Middle Pleistocene, according to genomic divergence estimates.[3][4] The Horned lark is known from around a dozen localities of Late Pleistocene age, including those in Italy,[5] Russia, The United Kingdom and the United States. The earliest known fossil is from the Calabrian of Spain, around 1–0.8 million years old. In 2020 a 46,000 year old frozen specimen was described from the Russian Far East.
Recent genetic analysis has suggested that the species consists of six clades that in the future may warrant recognition as separate species. A 2020 study also suggested splitting of the species, but into 4 species instead, the Himalayan Horned Lark E. longirostris, Mountain Horned Lark E. penicillata, Common Horned Lark E. alpestris (sensu stricto), alongside Temnick's Lark..