NEWS
South Africa ’ s Agulhas long-billed lark : adapting and surviving despite farming taking over their nesting grounds
Robert Leslie Thomson
Current Address : University of Cape Town Reprinted From : The Conversation
The Agulhas long-billed lark ( Certhilauda brevirostris ) is only found in South Africa . It builds nests on the ground mainly in Renosterveld fynbos , a type of vegetation filled with grasses and wild spring flowers that is critically endangered by agricultural expansion . The University of Cape Town ’ s FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology recently published the first study into the nesting practices of the lark . We talk to one of the researchers , Robert Thomson , about the future of this bird .
How many Agulhas long-billed larks are left ? Why are they important ?
The Agulhas long-billed lark is a South African endemic species restricted to the Agulhas plains , an area of about 15,000km ² on the southern coast within the Western Cape province . While larks are generally “ little brown birds ” that are often difficult to identify , the Agulhas long-billed lark has a longer beak . It also makes a distinctive sound that makes it easier to find and recognise . Because it only occurs in a small part of South Africa , the Agulhas longbilled lark presents ecotourism value and forms part of South Africa ’ s unique biodiversity .
However , the area in which this lark occurs has been almost fully transformed into agricultural land . The native vegetation , known as Renosterveld , mainly persists as small fragments .
Recent estimates put the population of the species at roughly 203,000 to 368,000 individual birds . These birds are classified as near-threatened because
Figure 1 . The Agulhas long-billed lark ’ s habitat is threatened by commercial farming . Courtesy Odette Curtis-Scott
they are only found in this small area of the world . Land use changes or any freak occurrence could be detrimental to the whole species and to other species that depend on this vegetation .
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Prior to this study , nothing was known about the nesting biology , or any of the nesting practices of the Agulhas longbilled lark . Finding the larks ’ nests was no easy task . The species is relatively shy and locating the nests often took hours of patient observation .
Can this lark survive outside the Renosterveld ?
Our research suggested that these larks prefer to nest in Renosterveld , with 66 % of nests found in Renosterveld patches – even in small patches growing along fence lines . But Renosterveld makes up less than 10 % of the landscape . However , we also found nests in other field types , which shows that this lark has adapted to nesting outside its natural habitat .
11 Grassroots Vol 24 No 1 March 2024