26 July 2021

Greater Short-toed Lark with deformed bill – Jubail area

Whilst birding the Jubail area recently we came across an odd-looking lark. It had a deformed bill making it look quite strange, but it also had what appeared to be longish primary projection. On first impressions it was close to a Greater Short-toed Lark with a reddish cap under certain poses but was a little confusing. After checking details when back home it appears to be a Greater Short-toed Lark. This is the second lark with a deformed bill I have seen recently with the first being a Bar-tailed Lark with a bill like a Curlew seen in Al Ula