Oriental Pratincole

Overview

The Oriental pratincole (Glareola maldivarum), also known as the grasshopper-bird or swallow-plover, is a wader in the pratincole family, Glareolidae. It is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Identification

• Short legs, long pointed wings, and a long forked tail.
• Brown back and head with black flight feathers; white belly and chestnut underwings that may appear black without excellent views.
• Short bill adapted for aerial feeding.
• Very similar to the collared pratincole, which also has a chestnut underwing, making distinction difficult in the field.

Habitat

A bird of open country, often seen near water in the evening. Native to Asia, breeding from North Pakistan and the Kashmir region, sporadically southwards towards the Maldives and Sri Lanka, Indochina, eastern China, Manchuria, and the Philippines. It winters throughout the Indomalayan realm and northern Australia.

Diet

Typically hunts insect prey on the wing like swallows, although it can also feed on the ground. Often seen hawking for insects near water in the evening.

Did you know?

The type specimen, caught alive at sea near the Maldive Islands, survived for a month on flies. In February 2004, 2.5 million Oriental pratincoles were recorded on the Eighty Mile Beach in Australia's north-west, with weather conditions supposedly causing much of the world's population to congregate in one area.