In the grasslands and prairies of Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, some of the most iconic bird songs are those of the meadowlarks.

There are three species of North American metal arks, the western, eastern, and chihuahuan. Not only do these birds sing pretty,

they look pretty too. Their underparts are boldly patterned in bright yellow and black.

When a meadowlark is singing from a perch, you can spot that yellow belly from a long way off.

People enjoy you can spot that yellow belly from a long way off.

People enjoy the look and sound of the Western Meadowlark so much that this is the official state bird for six U.S. states, North Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming, Montana, and my home state of Oregon.

Here in Oregon, a bunch of schoolchildren back in the 1920s voted to make the Western

meadowlark our state bird. Now, I love metal arks, but honestly, I might have chosen something

like the varied thrush or marbled

merlet to be Oregon's state bird, a bird that's more specific to the Pacific Northwest.

But when school children vote on something, you can't really argue with their decision, can you?

Not unless you want to be seen as some kind of monster.

Well, how about we take a close look at metal larks today to see what all the kids are excited about?

Hello and welcome.

This is the Science of Birds. I am your host, Ivan Philipson. The Science of Birds podcast is a light-hearted exploration of bird biology for lifelong learners.

This episode, which is number 85, is about all the meadowlarks of the world.

And it's not just those three North American species, the Western, Eastern, and Chihuahuan.

There are actually eight bird species we call

metal arks. The other five are found primarily in South America. We'll be talking about them

today, too. Now, you've heard me gripe before about the confusion that common names of birds

can cause. Common names, in many many cases just don't match the true

relationships among birds. For example, the American Robin is not at all closely related to

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