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Brown Songlark (Cincloramphus cruralis) Alternate name(s): "Black-breasted Lark", "Harvest-bird", "Singing Lark*", "Skylark*" Aboriginal name(s): "yedjoolop*" (WA) Size: 23-26 cm (male), 18-20 cm (female); wing span: ca. 30-33 cm (male), ca. 25-26 cm (female) Body mass: 66-82 g (male), 28-36 g (female)

Australia: Family Group 26 Family Group 26 Table Australian Reed-Warbler Spinifexbird Tawny Grassbird Little Grassbird Golden-headed Cisticola Zitting Cisticola Rufous Songlark Brown Songlark Yellow White-eye Ash-bellied White-eye Silvereye Bassian Thrush Russet-tailed Thrush Metallic Starling Thumbnails page Family group table Index of bird names Habitat pages Key plants Birds home page

Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Brown Songlarks are large Australian grassland larks. Their highly cryptic plumage is dimorphic, i.e. males and females are slightly different. During the breeding season, male Brown Songlarks have a dark brown front and eye-stripe. The rest of the head is dark greyish-brown. The back, from the mantle to the uppertail, is dark-brown with heavy light-brown scalloping and also light-brown edges on the wing feathers. Outside the breeding season, male Brown Songlarks are mostly grey, with some darker striation, in the areas that turn dark-brown during the breeding season. Only a central, dark-brown patch remains on the belly. Wings and tail remain roughly unchanged. The nearly straight bill is black; legs and feet are grey. Female Brown Songlarks are smaller than males and have the same plumage all year round. The throat is light greyish-brown, the breast and sides are greyish-brown. Only the centre of the belly has a dark-brown patch. They have a brown eye stripe and a light greyish-brown eyebrow. The crown and nape of the neck are scalloped brown. The wings and tail are similar to those of male Brown Songlarks. The bill has a dark-grey upper mandible and a horn-coloured lower mandible. The legs and feet are pinkish-brown. The eyes of both sexes have dark irises. Juveniles resemble females. Twitcher's tip All year round both male and female Brown Songlarks retain a dark-brown central patch on their belly, which distinguishes them from Rufous Songlarks, even in non-breeding plumage. Apart from that they are also larger.

Taxonomy, classification See Brown Songlark at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Brown Songlark is available HERE . Brown Songlarks are endemic to Australia. They breed in the south-western corner and the South-East of the continent and disperse northwards in winter. Their breeding range in the South-West encompasses a roughly semi-circular area around Kalgoorlie, WA, with Perth on its north-western fringe. In the South-East the breeding range extends from about the south-eastern half of SA through VIC and NSW into southern QLD, up to about the geographic latitude of the SA/NT border. They are rarely found in the Southern Alps South of Canberra, ACT, and along the south-eastern tip of the NSW/VIC coast between Sydney, NSW, and Lakes Entrance, VIC. They also rarely venture onto the coastal fringe of southern QLD and central QLD. Outside the breeding season their range encompasses the entire Australian continent, except the far North (Kimberley beyond Eighty Mile Beach, Top End of the NT and Cape York peninsula). Brown Songlarks have a strong preference for open grassland or low shrubs (also in crops). The males will use fence posts or shrubs as demarcations of their territories, while the females nest somewhere in the open grassland. Where to look? How to find this species? Brown Songlarks tend to be somewhat harder to find than their cousins, the Rufous Songlarks. This is mainly due to the fact that, even during the breeding season, male Brown Songlarks do not usually perch prominently, several meters off the ground. We have repeatedly found them on roadside fences, but not, e.g., on power lines. If one is familiar with the males' territorial calls, which they issue incessantly during their display flights, one will eventually be able to spot an often high-flying bird with a dark jizz. Females are MUCH harder to spot than males.

Sightings Click here for sighting information We first spotted a pair of Brown Songlarks on a fenceline in March 2008, on a trip through outback western NSW, 50 km West of Burren Juction, NSW. In December 2008 a male Brown Songlark was seen 20 km South-West of Narrabri, NSW, first calling from a spot in the tall grass of a paddock, later also in its characteristic display flight. Brown Songlarks were also seen at Goran Lake, an ephemeral lake about 30 km South of Gunnedah, NSW, in October 2011 and again in October 2013. Brown Songlarks can regularly be found in open farm country in the Narrabri area. For example, they are always found on a broadacre farm 5 km South-East of Bellata, NSW. We find them regularly in the area Narrabri, Wee Waa, Burren Junction, Pilliga, NSW. J. Greaves reports spotting a female Brown Songlark 50 km North of Leinster, Northern Goldfields, WA, in December 2014. R. Plumtree found Brown Songlarks near Tungamah, VIC, in October 2018, and at Lake Tyrell, VIC, in September 2019. Brown Songlarks are regularly found in the Australian Outback. M. Eaton reports finding Brown Songlarks occasionally in various locations in inland QLD, e.g. at Lake Clarendon, Gatton, QLD, and at Lake Samsonvale, QLD. Many Brown Songlarks were found in Outback QLD in the timeframe August/September 2022. Others were spotted along the Birdsville to Munga-Thirri Simpson Desert NP Road, QLD, in June 2025. Brown Songlarks are found only occasionally at Eulah Creek, 20 km East of Narrabri, NSW. We first found the species there in January 2019. M. Mearns found a Brown Songlark in Diamantina NP, QLD, in September 2019. In June 2022, M. Eaton found Brown Songlarks at Roxby Downs, SA.

Photos

ADULT

PAIR

Close-up near-lateral/lateral view of a pair of Brown Songlarks on the ground, with the male still primarily in non-breeding plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Winton, QLD, August 2022]

Near-dorsal view of a pair of Brown Songlarks, with the male on the right and the much paler female on the left; this photo was taken at the end of the breeding season, when both birds had already moulted into their non-breeding plumage
[Near Bourke, NSW, March 2008]

Dorsal view of a pair of Brown Songlarks in non-breeding plumage
[Near Bourke, NSW, March 2008]

MALE

BREEDING

Near-frontal view of a male Brown Songlark in breeding plumage on a roadside fence
[Near Cryon, NSW, March 2022]

Near-lateral view of a male Brown Songlark in breeding plumage marking its territory (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Lake Clarendon, Gatton, QLD, November 2019]

Lateral view of a male Brown Songlark in breeding plumage looking towards the observer (photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Lake Tyrrell, VIC, October 2019]

Lateral view of a male Brown Songlark in breeding plumage (photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Lake Tyrrell, VIC, October 2019]

Lateral view of a male Brown Songlark in breeding plumage looking backwards (photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Lake Tyrrell, VIC, October 2019]

Lateral view of a male Brown Songlark - note the dark appearance of its wet breeding plumage
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Near Tungamah, VIC, October 2018]

Near-dorsal view of a male Brown Songlark in breeding plumage looking back at the observer (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Birdsville to Munga-Thirri Simpson Desert NP Road, QLD, June 2025]

Near-dorsal view of a male Brown Songlark in breeding plumage looking sideways while singing (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Lake Clarendon, October 2018]

Near-lateral view of a male Brown Songlark in breeding plumage in display flight
[Goran Lake, NSW, September 2025]

Lateral view of a male Brown Songlark in breeding plumage singing in display flight
[Goran Lake, NSW, September 2025]

Lateral view of a male Brown Songlark in transitional plumage, just starting to moult, while already seen busy marking its territory with display flights and territorial calls
[Near Bellata, NSW, September 2015]

Near-dorsal view of a male Brown Songlark in transitional plumage
[Near Bellata, NSW, October 2013]

NON-BREEDING

Close-up frontal view of a male Brown Songlark still primarily in non-breeding plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Winton, QLD, August 2022]

Frontal view of a male Brown Songlark in non-breeding plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Roxby Downs, SA, June 2022]

Frontal view of a female Brown Songlark in non-breeding plumage looking sideways (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Roxby Downs, SA, June 2022]

Close-up near-lateral view of a male Brown Songlark still primarily in non-breeding plumage issuing its call (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Winton, QLD, August 2022]

Close-up lateral view of a male Brown Songlark still primarily in non-breeding plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Winton, QLD, August 2022]

Close-up near-lateral view of a male Brown Songlark still primarily in non-breeding plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Winton, QLD, August 2022]

Lateral view of a male Brown Songlark in non-breeding plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Roxby Downs, SA, June 2022]

Lateral view of a male Brown Songlark in non-breeding plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Erldunda, NT, June 2023]

FEMALE

Lateral view of a female Brown Songlark looking at the observer - note the characteristic black belly patch
[Goran Lake, NSW, October 2013]

Lateral view of a female Brown Songlark that was found with its foot stuck in sticky bitumen and had to be rescued by the photographer (photo courtesy of J. Greaves)
[50 km N of Leinster, Northern Goldfields, WA, December 2014]

Lateral view of a female Brown Songlark in a tail moult (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Birdsville to Munga-Thirri Simpson Desert NP Road, QLD, June 2025]

Near-dorsal view of a female Brown Songlark looking sideways (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Lake Samsonvale, QLD, December 2019]

Near-dorsal view of a female Brown Songlark (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Birdsville to Munga-Thirri Simpson Desert NP Road, QLD, June 2025]

Dorsal view of a female Brown Songlark (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Birdsville to Munga-Thirri Simpson Desert NP Road, QLD, June 2025]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Frontal view of a female Brown Songlark, as indicated by the black belly patch; the heavy streaking and pale gape indicate that this bird may still be a juvenile (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Birdsville Development Road, QLD, September 2022]

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Territorial

Mobility: Migratory

Elementary unit: Solitary/pair

Usually an observer will find the easy-to-spot male marking its territory from elevated perches or in display flights. The associated female shows skulking, cryptic behaviour on the ground and is often hard to find.

(Slightly unsharp) lateral view of a moulting female Brown Songlark on a sealed road - this behaviour is more often observed in Australasian Pipits (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Near Goondiwindi, QLD, March 2018]

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

brnslrk_20240201.m4a	(NW NSW)	Territorial calls (male in display flight)	© MD
brnslrk_20220218.m4a	(NW NSW)	Territorial calls (male in display flight)	© MD
brnslrk_20240201_3.m4a	(NW NSW)	Territorial calls (male in display flight)	© MD
brnslrk_20240201_2.m4a	(NW NSW)	Territorial calls (male in display flight)	© MD

More Brown Songlark sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

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