Antillean Nighthawk
Chordeiles gundlachii
Long-winged nightbird with intricate brown and gray patterning. Very similar to Common Nighthawk, best distinguished by voice. Gives a rapid series of hard, buzzy notes: "drik-rik-rik-rik." A Caribbean species; in the U.S., found only on the Florida Keys. Prefers open areas with mix of grass, bare ground, and shrubs. Nocturnal but can be seen hunting around dawn and dusk, searching for insects in flight.
Identification
The adults are dark with brown, grey and white patterning on the upperparts and breast; the long wings are black and show a white bar in flight. The tail is dark with white barring; the underparts are white with black bars. The adult male has a white throat; the female has a light brown throat. The most distinguishing characteristic to determine its identity from its closest relative the common nighthawk are the contrasting pale tertials near the back of the wings of a sitting bird. There are two color morphs, a gray and a rufous type. Like other nighthawks, this bird will display by flying upward with a distinctive call note, then diving, pulling out of the dive only a few feet from the ground. This creates a rush of air and distinctive sound.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Chordeiles gundlachii
- Authority
- Lawrence, 1857
- Order
- Caprimulgiformes
- Family
- Caprimulgidae
- Genus
- Chordeiles
Range and habitat
Their breeding habitat is open country of the Greater Antilles, the Lesser Antilles, the Bahamas, and the Florida Keys in the United States. They usually nest on bare ground, sometimes in raised locations including stumps or gravel roofs. They especially favor recently cleared areas in forests, airport fields, cane fields and pastures. Little is known about migration habits, although there is some evidence of migration routes to North and Central South America.
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Gray Butcherbird
Cracticus torquatus
Medium-sized ambush-hunter with a long gray bill with a dark, hooked tip. Black head and face with a white nape and throat. Upperparts dark gray, with white rump, mostly black wings (limited white), and black tail with narrow white tip. Rollicking, chuckling song.
Dark-throated Oriole
Oriolus xanthonotus
A streak-breasted oriole with a rather long, lipstick-pink bill. Male is yellow with a glossy black hood and dark wings. Female is olive-green above. Both sexes have dark red eyes. On Borneo absent from the northern parts of the island, where replaced by the very similar Ventriloquial Oriole. Inhabits lowland and hill forests and forest edges, typically moving in the upper levels of the forest. Sometimes found singly, sometimes in pairs or mixed flocks. Song is short but fluidly melodic, often with the last note stretched out. Gives a harsh, jay-like “chew!”.
Striated Thornbill
Acanthiza lineata
Small bird with thin pointed bill. Upperparts greenish brown, underparts off-white, with distinct dark streaking on throat and breast and reddish-brown cap. Similar Brown Thornbill lacks greenish tone in upperparts and has less defined streaking below. Inhabits eucalypt forest and other woodlands in southeastern Australia, where it feeds mostly on insects.
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