Despite many trips out to the Erg Chigaga region, we haven’t encountered the crested lark in the desert before, and certainly not in close proximity to the tents at camp.
Its song was distinctive, starting around dawn, it sounded so close we thought he was perched on the tent pole itself, but was likely in a nearby tree observing the camp. Mid-morning, we saw him singing from the top of a small mound of sand, relatively close to the ground, and still within very close range of activity at the camp.
Perhaps just a one-off visitor but we hope to at least hear crested lark again; a beautiful interruption of the desert silence.