Coursers and Pratincoles (Glareolidae)

Australian Pratincole (Stiltia isabella) - HBW 3, p. 381

French: Glaréole isabelle German: Stelzenbrachschwalbe Spanish: Canastera Patilarga
Other common names: Australian Courser, Long-legged/Isabelline Pratincole

Taxonomy: Glareola isabella Vieillot, 1816, “Australasie”.
Forms apparent link between coursers and pratincoles. Sometimes included in genus Glareola, or at other extreme in its own subfamily Stiltiinae. Monotypic.

Distribution: Drier regions of N & E Australia, spreading further S in wetter years, but absent from SW; breeds sporadically throughout Australian range, but seldom N of 18° S; two breeding records in Trans-Fly, S New Guinea. Migrates to N Queensland and Northern Territory, New Guinea and E Indonesian archipelago as far NW as S Borneo.