Posted by Liron Gertsman on September 5, 2013 at 11:58 pm
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The Sky Lark is a bird native to Eurasia. It is famous for its incredible song that it sings from January to July. The Sky Lark was attempted to be introduced in multiple locations in North America. None of these populations survived except for the group released in Saanich on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. The population climbed in this area. Soon the larks had spread to nearby areas like the San Juan Islands, where they were known to breed. The numbers reached the thousands and peaked in 1965. Then, due to habitat loss and other disturbances, the Sky Lark numbers plummeted and now just 100-200 birds remain on the Saanich Peninsula near the southern end of Vancouver Island off the coast of British Columbia, Canada.
On the Saanich Peninsula on Vancouver Island, there are three known sites where the birds are still regularly seen. These sites are the grass fields within the borders of the Victoria International Airport, the Vantreight Bulb Fields in Central Saanich, and a site called Martindale Flats.
I left on a ferry from the mainland on August 31st, and the next morning, I was successful in finding the Sky Larks at the Vantreight Bulb fields.
I took this photo with a Canon EOS 60D, a Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L USM lens, and a Canon EF 1.4x III teleconverter.