Distribution

The Temminck's Courser is endemic to the Afrotropics. The species' distribution mirrors that of the savanna biome and is almost identical to the distribution of the Bronze-winged Courser (Rhinoptilus chalcopterus), but the two have different microhabitat preferences. It is found in open bush savannas, short grasslands, or other similar open habitats in arid and semi-arid areas, from southern Mauritania and Senegambia across the Sahelian region to Ethiopia, then south through East, Central, and southern Africa. The species is highly nomadic, but some populations are resident or exhibit short-distance movements, either altitudinal or latitudinal, while others are possibly intra-African migrants (13 Clancey, P. A. (1984). Geographical variation and post-breeding dispersal in Temminck’s Courser of the Afrotropics. Gerfaut 74(4):361–374. Close ). As such, it is impossible to delineate breeding and nonbreeding ranges; therefore, the description that follows applies to the species' overall range.

Breeding Range

West Africa

The species is uncommon to locally fairly common in West Africa (13 Clancey, P. A. (1984). Geographical variation and post-breeding dispersal in Temminck’s Courser of the Afrotropics. Gerfaut 74(4):361–374. Close , 26 Maclean, G. L., and E. K. Urban (1986). Temminck’s Courser Cursorius temminckii Swainson. In The Birds of Africa. Volume 2 (E. K. Urban, C. H. Fry, and S. Keith, Editors). Academic Press, London, UK. pp. 212–213. Close , 36 Borrow, N., and R. Demey (2014). Birds of Western Africa. Second edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), where it occurs discontinuously from southern Mauritania (south of ~21°N) and Senegal in the west, then east along the West African Sahelian zone to Chad, where it is rare. It is usually found north of ~8°N, mostly avoiding the upper Guinea forests zone except in areas where there are suitable clearings. It has been recorded in the following West African countries: Mauritania (37 Browne, P. W. P. (1981). New bird species in Mauritania. Malimbus 3(2):63–72. Close , 38 Crochet, P-A., and M. Haas (2013). Western Palearctic list updates: re-evaluation of five species from continental Mauritania. Dutch Birding 35(1):28–30. Close ), Senegal (26 Maclean, G. L., and E. K. Urban (1986). Temminck’s Courser Cursorius temminckii Swainson. In The Birds of Africa. Volume 2 (E. K. Urban, C. H. Fry, and S. Keith, Editors). Academic Press, London, UK. pp. 212–213. Close , 36 Borrow, N., and R. Demey (2014). Birds of Western Africa. Second edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close , 39 Demey, R. (2019). Recent reports. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 26(2):230–248. Close , also see 40 Rose, J. B., O. J. L. Fox, B. Piot, and P. Delaporte (2023). The avifauna of Niokolo-Koba National Park, Senegal: a review of historical and recent ornithological records. Ostrich 94(3):137–177. Close ), Mali (41 Lamarche, B. (1980). Liste commentée des oiseaux du Mali. 1ère partie: Non-passereaux. Malimbus 2(2):121–158. Close ), Guinea (42 Morel, G. J., and M. Y. Morel (1988). Liste des oiseaux de Guinée. Malimbus 10:143–176. Close ), Côte d'Ivoire (43 Thiollay, J. M. (1985). The birds of Ivory Coast. Malimbus 7(1):1–59. Close , 44 Salewski, V. (2000). The birds of Comoé National Park, Ivory Coast. Malimbus 22(2): 55–76. Close , 45 Lachenaud, O., H-J. Oosterhuis, B. Boedts, and J. Gunningham (2008). Nouvelles observations ornithologiques en Côte d’Ivoire. Malimbus 30(1):19–29. Close ), Ghana (46 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2008). The avifauna of Mole National Park, Ghana. Malimbus 30:93–133. Close , 47 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2014). The Birds of Ghana: An Atlas and Handbook. Tauraco Press, Liège, Belgium. Close ), Togo (48 Cheke, R. A., and J. F. Walsh (1980). Bird records from the Republic of Togo. Malimbus 2:112–120. Close ), Burkina Faso (49 Thonnerieux, Y., J. F. Walsh, and L. Bartoli (1989). L'avifaune de la ville de Ouagadougou et ses environs (Burkina Faso). Malimbus 11(1):7–40. Close , 50 Demey, R. (2021). Recent reports. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 28(2):248–269. Close ), Benin (51 Green, A. A., and J. A. Sayer (1979). The birds of Pendjari and Arli National Parks (Benin and Upper Volta). Malimbus 1:14–28. Close ), Niger (52 Sauvage, A. (1993). Notes complémentaires sur l’avifaune du Niger. Malimbus 14:44–47. Close , 53 Nikolaus, G. (2000). The birds of the Parc National du Haut Niger, Guinea. Malimbus 22(1):1–22. Close , 54 Crisler, T., C. Jameson, and J. Brouwer (2003). An updated overview of the birds of W National Park, southwest Niger. Malimbus 25(1):4–30. Close , 39 Demey, R. (2019). Recent reports. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 26(2):230–248. Close ), Chad (55 Demey, R. (2015). Recent reports. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 22(1):97–114. Close , 56 Demey, R. (2018). Recent reports. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 25(1):88–108. Close ), Nigeria (57 Fry, H. (1964). The ecological distribution of birds in Northern Guinea Savanna, Nigeria. In Proceedings of the Second Pan-African Ornithological Congress (G. J. Broekhuysen, Editor). South African Ornithological Society, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. pp. 335–356. Close , 58 Button, J. A., C. H. Fry, and A. J. Hopson (1966). Additions to local avifaunas: Malamfatori, Lake Chad. Bulletin of the Nigerian Ornithologists' Society 3(10):42–43. Close , 59 Sharland, R. E., and R. Wilkinson (1981). The birds of Kano State, Nigeria. Malimbus 3(1):7–30. Close , 60 Wilkinson, R. (2008). Some recent records of birds from Gashka Gumti National Park and Ngel Nyaki, Nigeria, and the Gotel Mountains, Cameroon. Malimbus 30:156–164. Close ), and Cameroon (60 Wilkinson, R. (2008). Some recent records of birds from Gashka Gumti National Park and Ngel Nyaki, Nigeria, and the Gotel Mountains, Cameroon. Malimbus 30:156–164. Close ), and south to equatorial Africa, including the Central African Republic (61 Green, A. A. (1983). The birds of Bamingui-Bangoran National Park, Central African Republic. Malimbus 5(1):17–30. Close , 62 Germain, M., and J. P. Cornet (1994). Oiseaux nouveaux pour la République Centrafricaine ou dont les notifications de ce pays sont peu nombreuses. Malimbus 16(1):30–51. Close ), Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo (63 King, T. (2011). The birds of the Lesio-Louna and Lefini Reserves, Bateke Plateau, Republic of Congo. Malimbus 33(1):1–41. Close ).

The Horn of Africa (including Sudan)

Widespread and fairly common in Ethiopia, especially along the Great Rift Valley and the tropical and semi-arid savannas in the south (64 Redman, N., T. Stevenson, and J. Fanshawe (2011). Birds of the Horn of Africa: Ethiopia, Eritrea, Dijbouti, Somalia and Socotra. Second edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). It is generally uncommon in the Sahelian regions of Sudan, where it is mainly found east of the White Nile in eastern Sudan (65 Nikolaus, G. (1987). Distribution Atlas of Sudan's Birds with Notes on Habitat and Status. Bonner Zoologische Monographien 25. Zoologisches Forschungsinstitut und Museum Alexander Koenig, Bonn, Germany. Close ). Elsewhere in the region, it is scarce and localized, but it is resident in the Asmara region of Eritrea and northwestern Somalia (66 Demey, R. (2005). Recent reports. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 12(1):63–73. Close , 67 Ash, J. S., and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: An Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close , 64 Redman, N., T. Stevenson, and J. Fanshawe (2011). Birds of the Horn of Africa: Ethiopia, Eritrea, Dijbouti, Somalia and Socotra. Second edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). It can be found from sea level to 2,450 m in elevation in certain regions of Ethiopia (67 Ash, J. S., and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: An Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

East Africa (including South Sudan)

It is the most common and widespread courser in suitable habitat in East Africa, but is more localized in Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi (68 Britton, P. L., Editor (1980). Birds of East Africa. East African Natural History Society, Nairobi, Kenya. Close , 26 Maclean, G. L., and E. K. Urban (1986). Temminck’s Courser Cursorius temminckii Swainson. In The Birds of Africa. Volume 2 (E. K. Urban, C. H. Fry, and S. Keith, Editors). Academic Press, London, UK. pp. 212–213. Close , 69 Carswell, M., D. Pomeroy, J. Reynolds, and H. Tushabe (2005). The Bird Atlas of Uganda. British Ornithologists' Club and British Ornithologists' Union, Oxford, UK. Close , 70 Demey, R. (2012). Recent reports. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 19(1):94–110. Close , 71 Vande weghe G. R. (2018). Birds of Rwanda. Tanzaniabirds.net. Close , 72 Stevenson, T., and J. Fanshawe (2020). Field Guide to the Birds of East Africa: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi. Second edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close , 73 Tanzanian Birds & Butterflies (2020). Tanzania Bird Atlas Preliminary Map: Temminck’s Courser Cursorius temminckii. Tanzaniabirds.net. Close , 74 Birds of Africa (2023). Field Guide to the Birds of Africa (Version 1.25) [Mobile app]. Google Play. https://play.google.com/store/games?hl=en Close ). The nominate race temminckii finds its southernmost limits in northern and eastern Kenya, but is uncommon along the coast (13 Clancey, P. A. (1984). Geographical variation and post-breeding dispersal in Temminck’s Courser of the Afrotropics. Gerfaut 74(4):361–374. Close , 75 Demey, R. (2008). Recent reports. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 15(1):126–139. Close ). The subspecies ruvanensis reaches its northern limits in southwestern Kenya, Uganda, and the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (13 Clancey, P. A. (1984). Geographical variation and post-breeding dispersal in Temminck’s Courser of the Afrotropics. Gerfaut 74(4):361–374. Close ). It is generally uncommon in the Sahelian regions of South Sudan, found mainly to the west of the White Nile (65 Nikolaus, G. (1987). Distribution Atlas of Sudan's Birds with Notes on Habitat and Status. Bonner Zoologische Monographien 25. Zoologisches Forschungsinstitut und Museum Alexander Koenig, Bonn, Germany. Close ). However, there are a few records from the Nanyangacor area in the southeast of the country (76 de Bont, M. (2009). Bird observations from south-east Sudan. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 16(1):37–52. Close ). It sometimes breeds at elevations of up to 2,000 m and may wander as high as 3,000 m in places (68 Britton, P. L., Editor (1980). Birds of East Africa. East African Natural History Society, Nairobi, Kenya. Close ).

Central Africa

In Zambia and Malawi, Temminck's Courser occurs widely but sparsely in suitable habitats within an elevational range of 50–2,400 m (77 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2006). The Birds of Malawi: An Atlas and Handbook. Tauraco Press and Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close , 78 Dowsett, R. J., D. R. Aspinwall, and F. Dowsett-Lemaire (2008). The Birds of Zambia. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ). It is also found in open clearings and agricultural fields in the southern and eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is common throughout the arid and semi-arid open savannas of Angola (79 Dean, W. R. J. (2000). The Birds of Angola: An Annotated Check-list. British Ornithologists’ Union Check-list 18. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close , 80 Dean, W. R. J., and D. C. Le Maitre (2008). The birds of the Soyo area, northwest Angola. Malimbus 30(1):1–18. Close ), but uncommon in highland grasslands, e.g., Mount Moco (81 Mills, M. S. L., and W. R. J. Dean (2021). The avifauna of Mount Moco, Angola. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 28(2):177–196. Close ), and the mesic woodlands in the southeast of the country (82 Mills, M., and M. Melo (2013). The Checklist of the Birds of Angola/A Lista das Aves de Angola. Associação Angolana para Aves e Natureza (AvesAngola), Luanda, Angola and Birds Angola (www.birdsangola.org). Close , 83 Mills, M. S. L., M. Booysen, and R. S. Boyes (2020). Bird records from the little-known region of south-east Angola, 2015–18. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 27(1):63–79. Close ).

Southern Africa

In Namibia, it is mainly found in the arid and semi-arid savanna woodlands in the central and northern parts of the country. It is rarely found below the Western Escarpment (84 Brown, C. J., J. M. Mendelsohn, N. Thomson, and M. Boorman (2017). Checklist and analysis of the birds of Namibia as at 31 January 2016. Biodiversity Observations 8.20:1–153. Close ). It occurs widely throughout Botswana but only during the wet season in the southwest (85 Maclean, G. L., and M. Herremans (1997). Temminck's Courser Cursorius temminckii. In The Atlas of Southern African Birds. Volume 1: Non-passerines (J. A. Harrison, D. G. Allan, L. G. Underhill, M. Herremans, A. J. Tree, V. Parker, and C. J. Brown, Editors), BirdLife South Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa. pp. 446–448. Close ). It is also found over much of Zimbabwe, but mainly seasonally on the Central Plateau and the Midlands, where it breeds and then departs at the onset of the wet season. Elsewhere, it is common in the semi-arid southeastern and southwestern parts of the country, as well as in the Zambezi River valley in the north. In the east, it is found on the rain-shadow side of the Eastern Highlands, at elevations of up to 1,800 m (86 Irwin, M. P. S. (1981). The Birds of Zimbabwe. Quest Publishing, Harare, Zimbabwe. Close ). Temminck's Courser is an uncommon, widespread, but localised breeding resident in grasslands and savannas in Mozambique (87 Parker, V. (1999). The Atlas of the Birds of Sul Do Save, Southern Mozambique. Avian Demography Unit and Endangered Wildlife Trust, Cape Town and Johannesburg, South Africa. Close , 88 Parker, V. (2005). The Atlas of the Birds of Central Mozambique. Endangered Wildlife Trust and Avian Demography Unit, Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa. Close , 89 Allport, G., and J. W. T. Hogg (2024). Notable updates on the status of selected waders and African Skimmer Rynchops flavirostris in Mozambique. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 144(4):338–366. Close ) and Eswatini (85 Maclean, G. L., and M. Herremans (1997). Temminck's Courser Cursorius temminckii. In The Atlas of Southern African Birds. Volume 1: Non-passerines (J. A. Harrison, D. G. Allan, L. G. Underhill, M. Herremans, A. J. Tree, V. Parker, and C. J. Brown, Editors), BirdLife South Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa. pp. 446–448. Close ). It is rare in Lesotho, with only three confirmed records, all from the western lowlands (90 Ambrose, D. (2020). Lesotho Annotated Bibliography, Section 167A, Birds – Annotated Bird Checklist. House 9 Publications and Mohokane Trust, Roma, Lesotho. Close ). In South Africa, the species is mainly found in semi-arid open savanna woodlands as well as lightly wooded grassy clearings and plateaus in the provinces of Limpopo, North West, Gauteng, and Mpumalanga. Although generally scarce in upland grasslands, it is relatively common in short grassland in the Free State province (85 Maclean, G. L., and M. Herremans (1997). Temminck's Courser Cursorius temminckii. In The Atlas of Southern African Birds. Volume 1: Non-passerines (J. A. Harrison, D. G. Allan, L. G. Underhill, M. Herremans, A. J. Tree, V. Parker, and C. J. Brown, Editors), BirdLife South Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa. pp. 446–448. Close ). In KwaZulu-Natal, it is mainly confined to savanna woodlands on the coastal plain in the north. Although Skead (91 Skead, C. J. (1967). Ecology of birds in the eastern Cape Province. Ostrich Supplement 7:1–103. Close ) suggests it was once fairly common in the Eastern Cape, the species has experienced a range contraction in the region since the late 1960s (92 Vernon, C. (1982). Coursers in the Eastern Cape. Bee-eater 33:31–34. Close , 85 Maclean, G. L., and M. Herremans (1997). Temminck's Courser Cursorius temminckii. In The Atlas of Southern African Birds. Volume 1: Non-passerines (J. A. Harrison, D. G. Allan, L. G. Underhill, M. Herremans, A. J. Tree, V. Parker, and C. J. Brown, Editors), BirdLife South Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa. pp. 446–448. Close ).

Nonbreeding Range

The nonbreeding range is the same as the breeding range.

Elevational Range

From sea level to 2,000–3,000 m in elevation in Central and East Africa (93 Benson, C. W., R. K. Brooke, R. J. Dowsett, and M. P. S. Irwin (1970). Notes on the birds of Zambia: Part V. Arnoldia (Rhodesia) 4(40):1–59. Close , 68 Britton, P. L., Editor (1980). Birds of East Africa. East African Natural History Society, Nairobi, Kenya. Close , 94 Hanmer, D. B. (1989). Fauna and flora records. Nyala 13(1/2):87–101. Close ).

Introduced Range

Temminck's Courser has not been introduced beyond its known range.

Extralimital Records

There are no extralimital records for the species, but individuals are occasionally recorded well beyond their usual range, e.g., the Central Nama Karoo, the Succulent Karoo, and Fynbos in the Cape Point Nature Reserve (95 Fraser, M., and L. McMahon (1991). Birding at the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve. Birding in Southern Africa 43:38–43. Close , 96 Demey, R. (2013). Recent reports. Bulletin of the African Bird Club 20(1):92–108. Close ; 97 Fraser, M. (2014). Birds of the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve, South Western Cape, South Africa. Ornithological Observations 5:139–247. Close ; also see SABAP2).

Beyond its core range, the conversion of native vegetation, such as Fynbos and Renosterveld, to fields and pastures for agriculture has favored the establishment of resident populations on the southern and eastern littoral in the Eastern Cape (Humansdorp region) and Western Cape (Bredasdorp region) provinces of South Africa (see SABAP2).