Calcarius

a genus of birds of the family Emberizidae. The body is 14–16 cm long. The claw of the rear digit is elongate and slightly decurved. Reddish yellow tones predominate in the plumage. There are four species. The Lapland longspur (C. lapponicus) is found in the circumpolar tundra of the USSR. In the winter the bird migrates to the steppes. The Lapland longspur nests on the ground. A clutch contains four to six eggs, which are incubated mainly by the female for 13 or 14 days. Lapland longspurs feed on seeds and insects. The remaining three species of Calcarius live in North America—one in the tundra and two on the prairies and dry plains of western Canada and the United States.