Australian Pratincole
英文名：Australian Pratincole（学名：Stiltia isabella），是雀形目燕鸻科的鸟类。22–24厘米；翼展50–60厘米。纤细、优雅、站姿挺拔的沙橄榄色涉禽，具极长、窄而尖的黑色翅；胁部具深栗色和黑色斑块。繁殖羽：注意短而弯曲、端部红色的黑色嘴；腿长，灰色，暗红色或褐色。非繁殖羽：色暗，嘴大部黑色；喉部具黑色点斑；胁部斑块较小。未成年鸟：较褐，初级飞羽黑色部分较短；上体羽毛具沙色羽缘。单只至开阔的小群见于内陆道路旁。长腿善奔跑；追捕昆虫；跳跃、急转；接近时点头，身体后部上下摇晃。飞行迅速，如燕鸥般，翅极细长、后掠、端部黑色：注意翼下黑色、胁部栗色、下体白色；长腿明显伸出于短的、白色而中央黑色的尾外。
Australian Pratincole
22-24 cm; span 50-60 cm. Slim, graceful, upstanding sandy-olive wader with extremely long, narrow, pointed black wings; deep chestnut and black patch on flanks. Breeding Plumage: note short, arched, red-tipped black bill; legs long, grey, dull reddish or brown. Non-breeding: duller, bill mostly blackish; blackish spotting on throat; smaller flank marks. Immature: browner with shorter black primaries; sandy fringes to feathers of upperparts. Singles to open companies beside outback roads. Runs easily on long legs; pursues insects;leaps, swerves; on approach, bobs head, rocks rear of body up and down. Flight swift and tern-like on very slender, swept, black-tipped wings: note black underwings, chestnut flanks, white underparts; long legs protrude noticeably beyond the short, white, black-centred tail.
- Similar Species
- Oriental Pratincole: dark-rimmed cream throat patch, reddish tan wing linings; white, black-forked tail.
- Habitat
- vicinity of water on inland plains to coastal floodplains; stony ground with sparse low shrubs; claypans; bare margins of swamps; stock tanks, stock routes, airfields.
- Voice
- sweet 'weetweet' or shrill, tern-like 'quirree-peet'.
- Breeding
- in loose colonies mostly Sept.-Dec., but any month after suitable rain.
- Nest
- bare patch, ringed with small stones, plant material, dung pellets.
- Eggs
- 2; pale stone to creamy white, spotted and blotched grey, brown, black.
- Range & Status
- n. and inland e. Aust., from about Eighty Mile Beach (WA) to Rockhampton (Q), s. to coastal SA; casual in inland WA and Nullarbor Plain. Breeds mostly s. of Tropic, migrates n. in autumn-winter to n. Aust.; Torres Strait, PNG, Indonesia, Borneo. Vagrant NZ.
