Geographical Distribution
The River lapwing occurs in the northern Indian Subcontinent. In India, it breeds in the parts of East and Central India, including Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and eastern Madhya Pradesh, and disperses in winter to larger areas.

General Information  
The bird grows to a length of 30 cm and is characterized by a black forehead, crown, and a drooping crest extending over the back. Its upperparts are sandy grey-brown, with black and white wings, a black chin and throat bordered by white, a grey-brown breast band, and white underparts with a distinctive black belly patch. A black spur is present at the bend of the wing. Both sexes have similar plumage, though males are slightly larger. The species raises its black crest during displays. The juvenile is similar to the adult but has the black on the head partly obscured by white tips. It also features buff fringes and dark subterminal marks on the feathers of the upperparts. The bird typically remains solitary or forms pairs and small groups. It often adopts a hunched posture, with its body slightly drawn in. Calls shrilly and loudly, both during display and when alarmed.

It inhabits large rivers and lakes, favoring wide, slow-moving rivers with sandbanks, gravel bars, and islands. The bird often visits riverine vegetable fields, fallow lands with low, sparse crops, and sandy soil. It prefers melon beds on sandbanks as nesting sites, likely due to the minimal shade provided by the low-growing plants. .

Threats
- The species is threatened by incidental disturbances caused by people, livestock, and dogs, which can significantly disrupt its natural behavior.
- It is also potentially severely impacted by the numerous hydroelectric dam projects, both completed and planned, along large rivers in its range, which threaten to alter the natural flow regime.
- Hunting and the collection of eggs and chicks by people, dogs, and corvids across its range further threaten its population.