The feature that defines the Glareolidae family from the rest of the order is the bill, which is arched and has the nostrils at the base. They have an Old World distribution, occurring in southern Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia. Insects form the majority of their diet.
Pratincoles have short legs, long pointed wings and long forked tails. They have a buoyant flight that allows them the unusual (for the order) hunting technique of taking their insect prey on the wing. They are able to capture their prey on the ground as well. They live near wetlands, rivers, estuaries and other inland waterways. The wings also allow for long migrations in some species.
Coursers have long legs, which are used to run (giving the group its name. They feed in a plover-like fashion, running, then stopping to scan for prey before moving on. The wings are shorter and have a more sustained flight than that of the pratincoles. The coursers are typically found in open and arid environments such as deserts and scrub. The coursers are not particularly migratory. [abstracted from Wikipedia]


Genus Cursorius

Courser, Burchell's Cursorius rufus Found: Africa
Photographed by: 1) Jerry Oldenettel - Sossusvlei National Park, Namibia 


Courser, Cream-coloured Cursorius cursor  Found: Africa, Asia
Photographed by Shah Jahan - Dibba, United Arab Emirates


Courser, Somali  Cursorius somalensis  Found: Africa
Photographed by Steve Garvie - Buffalo Springs NP, Kenya


Courser, Indian  Cursorius coromandelicus  Found: South Asia
Photographed by  J M Garg - Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India


Courser, Temminck's  Cursorius temminckii   Found: Africa
Photographed by: 1) Steve Garvie in the Masai Mara, Kenya  2) Marcel Burkhard  3) Chandres



Genus Rhinoptilus

Courser, Bronze-winged  Rhinoptilus chalcopterus  Found: Africa
Drawn / Photographed by: 1) John Gerrard Keulemans  2) Gwendolen Tee


Courser, Two-banded also Double-banded Courser  Rhinoptilus africanus   Found: Africa
Photographed by:  1) Tom Bastin   2) Dick Daniels - Tanzania   3) DIck Daniels - Tanzania



Genus Pluvianus - 1 species

Plover, Egyptian  Pluvianus aegyptius  Found: Africa
Photographed by: 1) Steve Garvie - The Gambia



Genus Glareola

Pratincole, Oriental Glareola maldivarum   Found: Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand
Photographed by:  1, 2) Charles Lam 



Genus Stiltia - 1 species

Pratincole, Australian  Stiltia isabella  Found: Australia
Photographed by Jim Glas - Adelaide Zoo




Family Dromadidae - 1 genus

Genus Dromas- 1 species

Plover, Crab Dromas ardeola    Found: Coasts of Indian Ocean
Photographed by: 1, 2) Tarique Sani