Collared Pratincole
Glareola pratincola
Elegant, agile flier that looks like a cross between a plover and a swallow. Adult is warm gray-brown with an elegant “necklace” and red bill base. Juvenile is grayer, with white-fringed feathers. Very narrow (sometimes unnoticeable) white trailing edges to wings and dark rusty underwings distinguish this species from similar pratincoles. Usually seen in buoyant flight over open country, from dry fields to grassy wetlands with muddy shorelines. Inconspicuous on the ground; note short-legged and very long-winged “horizontal” profile. Feeds mainly in flight, sweeping back and forth like a giant swallow to snatch aerial insects.
Identification
This pratincole is 24–28 cm (9.4–11.0 in) long with a 60–70 cm (24–28 in) wingspan. It has short legs, long pointed wings, a long forked tail, and a short bill, which is an adaptation to aerial feeding. The back and head are brown, and the wings are brown with darker flight feathers. The belly is white. The underwings are chestnut, but look dark below.<p>Very good views are needed to distinguish this species from other pratincoles, such as the black-winged pratincole and the oriental pratincole, which may occur in its range. The latter species also has a chestnut underwing, but is shorter-tailed.
Taxonomy
The collared pratincole was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1766 in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae. He placed it with the swallows and swifts in the genus Hirundo and coined the binomial name Hirundo pratincola. The collared pratincole is now placed in the genus Glareola that was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760. The genus name is a diminutive of Latin glarea, "gravel", referring to a typical nesting habitat for pratincoles. The species name pratincola means an inhabitant of meadows, from Latin pratum, prati, "meadow" and incola, "inhabitant", from incolere, "to inhabit".<p>Two subspecies are recognised:
- Scientific name
- Glareola pratincola
- Authority
- (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Glareolidae
- Genus
- Glareola
Range and habitat
The collared pratincole is a bird of open country, and is often seen near water in the evening, hawking for insects. It is found in the warmer parts of Europe, southwest Asia and Africa. It is migratory, wintering in tropical Africa, and is rare north of the breeding range.
- Breeding range
- AF, PAL : patchily s temperate to tropical grassland near water, w, c Palearctic and Africa
- Non-breeding range
- AF
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Migration pattern: Complete migrants.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Sulawesi Nightjar
Caprimulgus celebensis
A long-tailed, boldly patterned nightjar with extensive gray markings on the upperparts, bold buff, black, and white markings, and a white throat. In flight, shows prominent white patches on outer wings and tail. Inhabits lowland forest, edge, scrub, and mangroves. Confined to Sulawesi and the Sula islands. Distinguished from the montane Diabolical Nightjar by its lowland habitat, paler plumage, extensive white in tail, and lack of a buff collar. Tail is longer than Savanna Nightjar’s. Gives a distinctive, explosive “tok-tok-toktrrtrr” call that speeds up, then decreases in volume at the end.
Brazilian Tanager
Ramphocelus bresilius
Fairly large tanager with a thick bill. Males are visually striking with bright crimson bodies and black wings and tail. Note the silver lower mandible. Females lack the silver bill and are mostly brown with a cinnamon belly and rump. Found at forest borders and in non-forest habitats, including urban parks and gardens.
Sulawesi Ground Dove
Gallicolumba tristigmata
A stocky, short-tailed forest pigeon. Shows a diagnostic head pattern, with yellow forehead, green upper nape, and burgundy collar. Back, wings, and tail dark brown, with gray outer tail feathers. Underside grayish, with soft yellow wash on the breast. Juvenile browner, with rusty edges to feathers. Singles or pairs forage on the floor inside montane forest. Typically runs away rather than flying. Restricted to Sulawesi island, where no other similar species occur. Gives a deep hooting call, sometimes with a barely audible introductory note: “whooo-whooo” or “w-whooo-w-whooo.”
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