Streaked Horned Larks use open, treeless expanses of bare ground or sparsely-vegetated grassland for nesting and foraging.
Limiting factors
Streaked Horned Larks have large area requirements. Loss and degradation of grassland habitat are key limiting factors. Nesting failure due to agricultural practices (e.g., mowing, haying, spraying) and predation at nest sites contributes to low reproductive success. Rodenticides (zinc phosphide) can also cause mortality.
Data gaps
Evaluate the appropriateness of reintroductions to areas where larks have been extirpated. Conduct demographic studies to determine population viability. Explore alternative approaches to reduce airstrikes. Investigate overwintering habitat selection and identify components of high-quality wintering habitat. Determine causes of adult mortality. Develop methods for improving fecundity. Examine adult and natal dispersal and movements of adults following nest failure.
Conservation actions
Manage habitat by maintaining or restoring large, sparsely-vegetated grasslands, creating protected nesting areas, increasing plant diversity to promote greater insect diversity, and controlling key non-native plants. Designate areas to be managed for core population centers. Minimize disturbance during the breeding and fledging period (mid-April through mid-August). Improving nesting habitat away from active runways may reduce collisions and improve adult survival, if enough suitable habitat exists away from the runway.
