The black-crowned sparrow-lark (Eremopterix nigriceps) is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae. It is found across northern Africa from Mauritania through the Middle East to north-western India. Its natural habitat is dry savanna. Taxonomy and systematics The black-crowned sparrow-lark is also known as the black-crowned finch lark, white-crested finch-lark, white-crested sparrow-lark, white-fronted finch-lark and white-fronted sparrow-lark. Subspecies Three subspecies are recognized: E. n. nigriceps - (Gould, 1839): Found on Cape Verde Islands Saharan black-crowned sparrow-lark (E. n. albifrons) - (Sundevall, 1850): Found from Mauritania and Senegal to Sudan Eastern black-crowned sparrow-lark (E. n. melanauchen) - (Cabanis, 1851): Found from eastern Sudan to Somalia, Arabia, Socotra Island, southern Iraq, Iran and Pakistan Description The adult males has a bold pied head pattern with a mainly blackhead with contrasting white forehead and white cheek patches. The upperparts are pale greyish brown with black underparts and underwings which contrast with a white patch at the sides of the breast. The tail is blackish with buff edges and grey central feathers, The bill is horn coloured. The females are very different being pale sandy brown on the upperparts with faint streaking on the crown and whitish patches around the eye and on the sides of the neck. The female's underparts are whitish with a pale cinnamon breast band and black underwing coverts, The juveniles are similar to the fameals but the feathers on the head are tipped with buff. The bird is 11.5–12.5 cm in length from bill to tail. The male's song is quite variable, typically consisting of a short series of simple, sweet notes, either sung in the flight display or from a low vantage point in a bush or on a rock. Distribution and habitat The black-crowned sparrow-lark occurs across North Africa, from the Cape Verde archipelago east through the Sahel of northern Africa, through the Arabian Peninsula and into Pakistan and India. The black-crowned sparrow-lark occurs in arid and semi-arid plains with scattered low vegetation and tussocks of grass, preferring sandy areas over areas with rocky soil, it has also been observed around salt pans. Behaviour and ecology In the heat of midday, these birds reduce water loss by staying in the shade, and it has even been recorded sheltering within the burrows of large lizards. It will also attempt to regulate its body temperature by flying with the legs dangling below it to expose the bare skin,