Context: Jerdon’s Courser, a critically endangered species, has not been visually spotted in over a decade.

Jerdon’s Courser (Rhinoptilus bitorquatus)

• It is a nocturnal bird belonging to the pratincole and courser family Glareolidae endemic to India.
• It inhabits open patches within scrub-forest. This habitat is under tremendous pressure due to various anthropogenic activities.
• It was considered to be extinct from the beginning of the 20th century until its rediscovery in 1986
• It is a restricted-range endemic found locally in India in the Eastern Ghats of Andhra Pradesh.
• It is currently known only from the Sri Lankamalleswara Wildlife Sanctuary, where it inhabits sparse scrub forest with patches of bare ground.

Features

• It is an unmistakable compact courser, with two brown breast-bands. It is a delicate lapwing-like bird with a large eye and a short, bicolored bill.
• It has a yellow base to the black bill, a blackish crown, broad buff supercilium, and an orange-chestnut throat patch. A narrow white crown stripe runs on top of the head