Damage and Damage Identification

Horned lark, Eremophila alpestris

Vegetable crops damaged by horned larks include beets, broccoli, carrots, lettuce, peas, spinach, and tomatoes. Other field and truck crops damaged are alfalfa, grain, sugar beets, cantaloupes, and watermelons. Flower plantlets of many varieties and commercial seed plantings are frequently damaged by horned larks.

Damage usually begins as the first plants break through the surface of the soil. Horned larks nip off parts of the tender plantlets. In the case of small seedlings such as lettuce, they may pull up the entire plant. If the seedlings are not destroyed in the early stage of growth, the secondary leaflets and adventitious buds are rapidly consumed as they appear. In irrigated fields, where the plants grow rapidly, the damage is usually of short duration. It is normally curtailed when the seedlings reach a height of 3 to 4 inches (7 to 10 cm). Plant growth is slow in dry land areas, thus the dam-age may extend over a long period and excessive losses may occur.

In dry land farm areas, crop damage by horned larks is closely correlated with the dry season. Most of the crop depredations occur after the natural vegetation of the surrounding range or grassland has dried up, and may continue until the first fall rains come. The first evidence of damage by horned larks is usually the denuding of plants from a small area in the center of the field. As the damage continues, the bare spot may spread rapidly until a narrow fringe of undamaged plants remains along the borders of the field.

Legal Status

Horned larks are classified as migratory nongame birds in the Code of Federal Regulations. Depredation permits are required from the US Fish and Wildlife Service before any control activities can be initiated. Horned larks may be controlled in California, under general supervision of the county agricultural commissioner.