Range, Abundance and Movement Patterns of Wintering Streaked Horned Larks (Eremophila alpestris strigata) in Oregon and Washington

Little is known about the wintering range or movement patterns of Streaked Horned Larks between breeding and wintering locations. The goals of this project are to (1) survey and count all Streaked Horned Larks on known wintering sites; and (2) assess movement patterns between breeding and wintering sites. The vast majority of the Streaked Horned Larks winter in the Willamette Valley (72%) and on the lower Columbia River (20%). Birds from the Puget lowlands move south to the Willamette Valley or to the Washington coast, while many birds on the Washington coast and lower Columbia River appear to be resident or move between these two regions. In the Willamette Valley, overwintering site fidelity among years appears to be low. Although no quantitative analysis of Streaked Horned Lark wintering habitat exists, we have found that overwintering larks use habitats identical or very similar to breeding habitats.