The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1904-08-03
TEE SIX I.l j. s SONG
AN ASTONISHING FEaTaFRoM MANY
POINTS Or NiEW.


Not Alone Ks3Itsa@yvonderGo HIeIody
Tone ana aun1tty, but It's yolunae
liz Alternating and Its cfrcuznsta a &c
of Utternnce n Physical Mary ell:
For its music alone the song of the
lark is almost the most melocious OF
any birds. The tone and quality are
admirable and the volumesof sound as
tonishing. It can be Heard clearly
when the lark has mounted, as It
sometimes does, beyond recognition by
normal eyesight The volume of sound
is also most noticeable when Gagged
lark is heard, singing as it does far
nearer to the nearer than the bird in
the sky. But apart from the quality
and music OF the song the circum-
stances in which it is uttered render
it an astonishing feat.
Every other considerable sonSster is
quite aware that singing entails much
physical effort. Consequently it takes
care to secure good platform to sing
from A thrush or a blackbird or
robin nearly always selects top shoot
or projecting bough, preferably dead
one, on which it sits and sings, never
moving it's position, and without any
objects round it to hinder the carry OF
its voice The blackcap and nightin-
gale and some of the warblerS SIT IN
a bush to sing, but the whitethroat
and even the hedge sparrow choose
the topmost twig. The whitethroat
sometimes sings when descendins,<an ana
some of the pipits and the wood lark
do the same, the meadow piDit singing
a feeble little song as it makes short
ascent and descent.
But to the strain on its lungs of long
protracted song the lark adds the great
muscular exertion of u steady upward
flight, usually carried out not by seal
ing the air in gentle circles, as in the
soaring of the larger birds. but by
vertical climb made by tleTincessant>
beating of it's wings. NordsWorth's
recognition of it as the
Type of the wise who soar, but ne:e1
roam.
True to the kindred points OF heaven ana
home,
is often almost literally correct. After
two or three spirals the bird goes up
almost as if it We're drawn heavenward
by a cord, and then. closing its wings,
descends like falling stone to the
very point from which it rose. The
strain upon the muscles and the lungs
would be great if during all this time
it were silent But it chooses to add
to the eXertion of soaring that of pour
ing forth a continuous flood of sweet
notes with no intermissions or breaks
a lark will soar and sing during Q
space of ten minutes consecutively. The
rapidity with which the pectoral mus
cles are working during this period
may be judged from the fact that the
bird makes not less than from FIVE to
six beats of the wing per second. The
beats are usually in sets OF from three
to five. the bird pausing for moment
as it to take 4 fresh start after. tie |
interval. When chased by the merlin
falcon. sliylarks make their finest eE-
hibitionS of flight. ascending into tie
air to heights which have been esti-
mated as being not less than thou
sand feet. Sometimes the bird Uses
The same means of ascent as VIXEN it is
soaring and singing, rising vert..csi.y
BY incessant beats of the wing. Ia lie |
language of the falconer. these axe |
termed mounting" larks. and their
object is to outfly the hawk directly.
shaking eff it's pursuit during the as
spiral. which tie falcon initiates.
Mr.. E. B. Michel, i'll his volume Oh
The Art and Practice of Hawking
says: THE one bird may be circline
rom right to left and the other from
eft to right, and neither seems to guide
he direction of its rings by any refer
.nce to those which the other is max
ng. 1t is now q struggle to see which
AN get up fastest, and it is astonish-
ng to see to what height such flights
Will sometimes reach. AS soon as q
ark is 500 feet high it can drop, almost
ike a stone, into any cover within
adius of 200 yards from the spot just
lnder it, allowance being made for the
fleet of the wind. But 500 feet is not
Ugh for a ringing flight; at least there
S nothing unusual about it. y lark
loes not go out of sight until it is
much above that height, and it is no
thing for it to do this
The lark seldom sings late i'll the day.
t can be tempted to rise in q burst of
Melody for one final ascent if the even
ng sun breaks through the clouds after
ain, but as q rule it is silent long
efore the sun has descended into the
Western bed of cloud. We have Mil :
on's authority that it is up and in song ,
efore dawn. But those who have
Heard the lark begin it's flight
And singing startle the dull night !.