Family:
The black-winged pratincole is a medium-sized, short-legged wader with long-pointed wings, forked tail, and a short bill. It has sandy-brown upperparts, dark brown wings with black fight feathers, a white belly and black underwings. The upper breast is brown while the throat is cream edged with black.
On the head, the lores are black, there is a white crescent below the eye, and there is a small red mark below the bill. Both sexes are similar.
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Black-winged pratincoles feeds on insects including grasshoppers, locusts, and beetles. Unlike most waders they hunt their prey in the air, catching them in their bill during flight, sometimes high up but also above the ground and water. They will also chase insects while walking on the ground.
During breeding season, black-winged pratincoles can be found in south-east Europe and south-west Asia in open country on steppes and dry flats, but often near water in the evening. It migrates to tropical Africa for the winter.
