Puerto Rican Nightjar vs Lesser Nighthawk

Antrostomus noctitherus comparado con Chordeiles acutipennis

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Side-by-Side Comparison

Atributo Puerto Rican Nightjar Lesser Nighthawk
Nombre científico Antrostomus noctitherus Chordeiles acutipennis
Orden Caprimulgiformes Caprimulgiformes
Familia Caprimulgidae Caprimulgidae
Estado de conservación Vulnerable Least Concern
Longitud
Envergadura 26,5 cm (10.4 in) 33,0 cm (13.0 in)
Peso 35,99 g (1.27 oz) 50,0 g (1.76 oz)
Dieta Catches large flying insects, especially moths, at night over Puerto Rican dry limestone forest; endangered. Hawks small flying insects at dusk and dawn over North and South American arid scrub …
Tamaño de la puesta 1-2 1-2
Population Trend
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Habitat Comparison

Hábitats compartidos

Ninguno

Puerto Rican Nightjar only

Lesser Nighthawk only

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Song & Call Comparison

Puerto Rican Nightjar

Canto

Sharp 'took' or 'took-WHEEER'; distinctive two-note call; calls from dry coastal forest of Puerto Rico; endangered; calls less frequently than mainland relatives

Lesser Nighthawk

Canto

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

Puerto Rican Nightjar

Endemic to Puerto Rico; critically endangered resident of karst limestone scrub and dry forest in the southwestern part of the island.

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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Estado de conservación

Vulnerable

Puerto Rican Nightjar

Least Concern

Lesser Nighthawk

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How to Tell Them Apart

Puerto Rican Nightjar

Plumaje

Small; grey-brown and buff mottled above with dark vermiculations; white gorget in male; pale buff barred underparts; white outer tail spots in male; buff tail in female; critically small range …

Lesser Nighthawk

Plumaje

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

Puerto Rican Nightjar

A small Caprimulgidae nightjar (~36 g) endemic to the dry limestone coastal scrub of southwestern Puerto Rico. Cryptically patterned grey-brown. Restricted to a tiny area of suitable habitat; population estimated at a few hundred pairs. Feeds on insects at night. Vulnerable from habitat conversion and introduced predators.

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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