Little Pratincole
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| Little Pratincole | ||||||||||||||
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 Little Pratincole, Bangalore India
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| Glareola lactea Temminck, 1820 |
The Little Pratincole or Small Indian Pratincole (Glareola lactea), is a small wader in the pratincole family, Glareolidae.
The Little Pratincole is a resident breeder in India, Western Pakistan and southeast Asia. It breeds on gravel or sand banks in rivers, laying 2-4 eggs in a ground scrape. Breeding areas include small areas in northern Karnataka and northern Kerala near Kannur.
This species is only 16.5-18.5 cm in length, with a 15-16 cm wingspan. Because of its small size, the Little Pratincolescan be briefly confused in flight with swifts or swallows.
This bird has short legs, long pointed wings and a short tail. Its short bill is an adaptation to aerial feeding. On the ground, it looks mainly pale grey (hence lactea, milky). The crown of the head is brown.
The wings are grey above with black primaries and black and white bars at the rear edge of the inner flight feathers. The underwings are mainly black. The tail is white with a black terminal triangle. The belly is white.
The most unusual feature of the pratincoles is that although classed as waders they typically hunt their insect prey on the wing like swallows, although they can also feed on the ground.
The Little Pratincole is a species of open country, and is often seen near water in the evening, hawking for insects.
[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2004). Glareola lactea. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
[edit] Gallery
 At Purbasthali in Bardhaman District of West Bengal, India. |
