The lesser short-toed lark (Alaudala rufescens) is a small passerine bird. The genus name Alaudula is a diminutive of Alauda, and the specific rufescens is Latin for "reddish", from rufus "red". It breeds in Spain, north Africa, also including Turkey eastwards across the semi-deserts of central Asia to Mongolia and China. Many populations, including the Spanish and African breeders, are sedentary (non-migratory), but some Asian birds from the north of the breeding range migrate south in winter. This species is a very rare wanderer to northern and western Europe.