The Lapland Longspur (Calcarius lapponicus) is a stocky finch-like bird that breeds on Sweden's alpine tundra and is often seen in lowland areas during migration, typically in loose flocks alongside Snow Buntings or Meadow Pipits. At about 15 cm, the breeding male is striking, with a black head, face and breast, a yellow throat edge and a chestnut nape. Females and winter birds are far more subdued — brownish-grey and finely streaked, though usually showing a hint of rust-brown on the nape and a pale facial pattern. The bill is sturdy and conical, built for a diet of seeds.
The contact call is a clear, rolling "prryrrt" often followed by a bright, sharp "tee", most often heard from birds in flight, while the song is a short, clear, melodic strophe delivered from a boulder or a brief display flight. In Sweden the species breeds on tundra-like heaths in the mountain range, and during migration — chiefly September–October and April–May — it passes through the rest of the country, turning up on open ground even in the lowlands; a few birds occasionally winter in southern Sweden. It nests on the ground, well hidden among tussocks or under a low bush on the alpine heath, where the female lays 4–6 eggs; the short mountain summer allows only a single brood, and young leave the nest before they are fully fledged. In summer it feeds mainly on insects and spiders, important food for the chicks, switching to seeds from grasses and herbs on fields, beaches and other open ground during migration and winter.
Read about this species in Swedish →