Why they're called Horned Larks.

 In the UK they call them Shorelarks, as far as I know they don't breed in the UK but are usually seen around the Eastern Coastline in Winter which is why they're called Shorelarks. I used to see them almost every year along the beach at Holkham sometimes as many as 10-15 running. along the tidal sands. In the US they're called Horned Larks for obvious reasons. They're the same species Emerophila alpestris but here in PA they're  resident and number in the hundreds when they spend the winter in the cornfields around home. When it snows they are always found along the lanes where the snowploughs expose bits of the grass verge where they can peck around for seeds. The single digit Fahrenheit temperatures doesn't seem to bother them in the slightest whereas I'm freezing my ass off waiting in the car to photograph them.

Horned Lark

Horned Lark

Horned Lark