Bates's Nightjar vs Lesser Nighthawk

Caprimulgus batesi مقارنةً بـ Chordeiles acutipennis

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Side-by-Side Comparison

السمة Bates's Nightjar Lesser Nighthawk
الاسم العلمي Caprimulgus batesi Chordeiles acutipennis
الرتبة Caprimulgiformes Caprimulgiformes
الفصيلة Caprimulgidae Caprimulgidae
حالة الحفاظ Least Concern Least Concern
الطول
طول الجناح 37,1 cm (14.6 in) 33,0 cm (13.0 in)
الوزن 100,5 g (3.55 oz) 50,0 g (1.76 oz)
النظام الغذائي Nighttime aerial hunter of moths and large beetles; forages in low-level coursing flight above grassland … Hawks small flying insects at dusk and dawn over North and South American arid scrub …
عدد البيض في الوضع 1 1-2
Population Trend
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Habitat Comparison

الموائل المشتركة

بلا

Bates's Nightjar only

Lesser Nighthawk only

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Song & Call Comparison

Bates's Nightjar

الغناء

Deep, resonant churring trill; one of larger African Caprimulgus; low hollow 'churrrr' from Central African rainforest; calls at night from dense lowland forest

Lesser Nighthawk

الغناء

Loud purring trill; buzzy 'brrrrr' given in flight; lower and softer than Common Nighthawk; males display with booming wingbeats; calls at dusk over deserts

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Geographic Range & Migration

Bates's Nightjar

Found across West Africa from Gambia east to Sudan and south to the DRC. Resident in open savanna. Male has spectacular elongated tail feathers.

Lesser Nighthawk

Breeds in open arid scrub from southwestern USA south through Central America to western South America; winters in Mexico and northern South America.

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حالة الحفاظ

Least Concern

Bates's Nightjar

Least Concern

Lesser Nighthawk

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How to Tell Them Apart

Bates's Nightjar

الريش

Large and very dark; blackish-brown upperparts with minimal pale patterning; small white throat spot; underparts dark brown with buff barring; one of the darkest nightjars, inhabiting dense Central African rainforests.

Lesser Nighthawk

الريش

Brown and buff mottled above; buff-white below with brown barring; white throat in male; white wing bar closer to wingtip than in Common Nighthawk; buff tail band. Female with buff …

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About These Birds

Bates's Nightjar

A medium-sized nightjar (24-26 cm) of lowland primary rainforest in the Gulf of Guinea region of West and Central Africa. Dark brown plumage. Nocturnal insectivore, feeding in the forest interior. Poorly known due to secretive habits and dense forest habitat.

Lesser Nighthawk

A small Caprimulgidae nighthawk (~50 g) of deserts, semi-arid scrub, and open woodland from the southwestern United States to Peru and Brazil. Brown-and-buff patterned; males have a white throat bar. Low, buoyant flight close to the ground at dusk. Hunts insects aerially. Migratory; Least Concern.

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