Black Larks Spotted in Omsk Region
Rare black larks, listed in the Red Data Book, have been spotted in Omsk Region, where they winter to feed on spilled grain and weeds.
Apr 29, 2026 0
For black larks, Omsk Region serves as a winter feeding ground.
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Rare birds listed in the Red Data Book—black larks—have arrived in Omsk Region. The Department of Wildlife Protection reported that these birds usually appear in the region in late February. A flock of about a thousand was spotted in the Steppe State Nature Reserve in Okoneshnikovsky District.
Senior researcher at the Institute of Systematics and Ecology of Animals of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Sergey Solovyov, explained to NGS55.RU that black larks actually winter in Omsk Region and should not be called harbingers of spring.
“These are representatives of the Central Asian fauna—wintering birds of the Omsk Region’s avifauna. They appear here only during wintering from November to March. We looked for their nesting grounds but did not find any. For them, Omsk Region is a winter resort. They survive the winter because there is a lot of spilled grain along roads and many weeds. They feed on that,” Solovyov explained.
The usual habitat of black larks is southern Kazakhstan, where they are found in summer. According to the professor, the wintering avifauna of Omsk Region also includes the snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis), which arrives here from Taymyr.
Earlier, we reported on how a woman from Omsk nursed an injured swift.
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