Spotted Nightjar vs Heinrich's Nightjar
Eurostopodus argus compared with Eurostopodus diabolicus
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Spotted Nightjar | Heinrich's Nightjar |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Eurostopodus argus | Eurostopodus diabolicus |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Caprimulgidae | Caprimulgidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 42.7 cm (16.8 in) | 39.9 cm (15.7 in) |
| Weight | 102.5 g (3.62 oz) | 104.0 g (3.67 oz) |
| Diet | Aerial insectivore; hawks large moths, beetles, and flying insects at dusk and dawn over Australian … | Nocturnal aerial insectivore; catches moths and beetles in flight over Sulawesi forest; poorly known. |
| Clutch Size | 1 | 1 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
Spotted Nightjar
Loud churring 'good-lord-deliver-us' repeated at dusk; melodic bubbling quality; also emits hollow 'cow-cow-cow' series and soft frog-like croaking
Heinrich's Nightjar
Haunting, hollow 'ku-WOO' repeated rhythmically; deep resonant quality; distinctive mournful whistle carrying through Sulawesi forest at night
Geographic Range & Migration
Spotted Nightjar
Resident and partial migrant of open woodland, grassland, and scrub across mainland Australia and migrating to New Guinea and Indonesia in winter.
Heinrich's Nightjar
Endemic to Sulawesi, Indonesia; resident of montane forest; extremely rare and poorly known, with very few records.
Conservation Status
Spotted Nightjar
Heinrich's Nightjar
How to Tell Them Apart
Spotted Nightjar
Cryptically mottled grey-brown, rufous, and black with intricate vermiculations; distinctive large white spots on wing coverts; white throat patch; no white in wings or tail. Sexes similar with slight pattern …
Heinrich's Nightjar
Rufous-brown and dark brown mottled with buff vermiculations; large pale buff throat patch; pale buff supercilium; no white wing markings; tail darkly barred brown and buff. Poorly known; Sulawesi endemic.
About These Birds
Spotted Nightjar
A medium Caprimulgidae nightjar (~103 g) of open woodland, spinifex grassland, and rocky ridges across mainland Australia. Intricately spotted and barred brown, grey, and buff. Cryptic by day on the ground among leaf litter. Crepuscular and nocturnal; feeds on flying insects caught in aerial pursuit. Least Concern.
Heinrich's Nightjar
A medium Caprimulgidae nightjar (~104 g) endemic to the forest and forest-edge habitats of Sulawesi, Indonesia. Cryptically patterned brown-and-buff. Nocturnal insectivore; catches moths and beetles in aerial sallies. Little studied and rarely encountered in the field. Least Concern within its Sulawesi range.