The bronze-winged courser or violet-tipped courser (Rhinoptilus chalcopterus) is a species of bird in the family Glareolidae. This species is named for its characteristic bronze-tipped feathers that are visible during flight. It is found living throughout Sub-Saharan Africa, inhabiting semi-arid savannas and woodlands. This is a nocturnal species which mainly feeds on ground-dwelling insects. Bronze-winged coursers are typically solitary, only forming monogamous pairs for breeding. A female may produce 2-3 eggs per clutch, and the chicks receive parental care from both sexes when young. The bronze-winged courser is considered of Least Concern for conservation status, and is thought to be a very stable species.
The bronze-winged courser is a species of small wading birds with long legs and short wings. The bronze-winged courser is the largest of the coursers, with a body length of 25-29 centimeters, a wingspan up to 58 centimeters, and body weight between 91 and 220 grams.
The bronze-winged courser can be recognized by its characteristic head markings and overall coloration. The adult plumage differs from the juvenile plumage in this species. Mature adults have a dull grey-brown upper breast and back. The upper tail is white, while the remainder of the tail is dark brown and bordered with white. The breast features a thin black band that separates the brownish-grey upper chest from the buffy lower breast and belly. The head has distinct cream-white supercilium, forecrown, and posterior eyeline, as well as buffy upper neck and throat. The facial lores and ear-coverts are darker brown-black. The underwing coverts are white, contrasting with the dark black primaries which are tipped with iridescent copper to violet coloration. These copper wingtips are visible exclusively during flight–denoting the bird’s common name the “bronze-winged courser”. The bill is long and curved slightly downward, and appears black with a reddish-purple base. The eyes are large on the head, featuring a bright reddish-purple eye ring. The long legs are red in color.
The adult bronze-winged courser in flight may be visually confused with another group that is similar in appearance–the lapwings. Both have comparable underpart coloration and body size.
The juvenile bronze-winged courser sports a less vibrant plumage pattern in contrast to the adults. The upper feathers of the body are cream-yellow at the ends, and the breast features an even thinner dark band. Chicks of this species are speckled in appearance, looking almost like sandy burnt vegetation.