Common Nighthawk

Chordeiles minorOrder: CAPRIMULGIFORMES Family: Nighthawks and Nightjars (Caprimulgidae)

Codes: Common Name: CONI Scientific Name: CHOMIN ITIS Taxonomic No.: 177979

Breeding Location:

Coastal ponds, Roof tops

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Solitary nester

Breeding Population:

Declining slightly

Egg Color:

White to pale olive buff with brown and gray spots

Number of Eggs:

Incubation Days:

19 - 20

Egg Incubator:

Female

Nest Material:

No nest materials.

Migration:

Migratory

General

Common Nighthawk: Medium-sized, lanky nightjar with white-speckled, dark upperparts, black-and-white barred underparts, mottled breast, and white throat. Wings are long and dark gray with white bars, nearly covering tail when folded. Female and juvenile have gray throat patch.

Range and Habitat

Common Nighthawk: Breeds throughout the U.S. Winters are spent in South America. Well-adapted to urban life: flat-topped gravel roofs provide nesting habitat and lighting systems around buildings serve as foraging areas for insects.

Breeding and Nesting

Common Nighthawk: Lays two white to pale olive buff eggs, spotted with brown and gray, in a small ground depression or, in cities, on flat gravel rooftops. Female incubates eggs for approximately 19 days. Young are semi-precocial and start to fly at around 23 days.

Foraging and Feeding

Common Nighthawk: Feeds on mosquitoes, flying ants, moths, beetles, and other insects. Forages day or night on the wing, up to 600 feet above the ground, with its enormous mouth surrounded by bristles ideally suited for aerial capture; alternates slow, full wing beats with bursts of quick shallow beats while hunting. Sometimes feeds on insects attracted to lights. Drinks in flight, skimming the water surface with lower mandible.

Vocalization

Common Nighthawk: Call is made in flight, a repeated, nasal "peent." Wings produce a hollow booming sound when pulling out of a steep dive, lending to the common name of Boom Bat in the south.

Similar Species

Common Nighthawk: Antillean Nighthawk is slightly smaller and shorter-winged, but is chiefly distinguished by its rapid multi-syllabic calls. Lesser Nighthawk has white band on wing nearer wingtips, with primaries above the band showing buff spots.

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Common Nighthawk

Common Nighthawk: Medium nightjar with white-speckled, dark upperparts, black-and-white barred underparts, mottled breast, white throat. Wings are long, dark gray with white bars, nearly covering tail when folded. Gray-brown legs and feet. Darting erratic flight with frequent changes of direction.

● Song: "peeant", "beant"

● Foraging & Feeding: Common Nighthawk: Feeds on mosquitoes, flying ants, moths, beetles, and other insects. Forages day or night on the wing, up to 600 feet above the ground, with its enormous mouth surrounded by bristles ideally suited for aerial capture; alternates slow, full wing beats with bursts of quick shallow beats while hunting. Sometimes feeds on insects attracted to lights. Drinks in flight, skimming the water surface with lower mandible.

● Breeding & nesting: Common Nighthawk: Lays two white to pale olive buff eggs, spotted with brown and gray, in a small ground depression or, in cities, on flat gravel rooftops. Female incubates eggs for approximately 19 days. Young are semi-precocial and start to fly at around 23 days.

● Similar species: Common Nighthawk: Antillean Nighthawk is slightly smaller and shorter-winged, but is chiefly distinguished by its rapid multi-syllabic calls. Lesser Nighthawk has white band on wing nearer wingtips, with primaries above the band showing buff spots.

Flight Pattern

Slow steady wing beats., Darting flight on long pointed wings with erratic twists and turns and changes of direction.

● Range & Habitat: Common Nighthawk: Breeds throughout the U.S. Winters are spent in South America. Well-adapted to urban life: flat-topped gravel roofs provide nesting habitat and lighting systems around buildings serve as foraging areas for insects.

^BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester

^PopulationDeclining slightly

^MigrationMigratory

^Weight2.2 Ounces

Underparts

Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.

Upperparts

Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.

Breast

The upper front part of a bird.

Lower mandible

The lower part of the bill.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America