Sombre Nightjar vs Spotted Nightjar

Caprimulgus fraenatus comparé à Eurostopodus argus

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Side-by-Side Comparison

Attribut Sombre Nightjar Spotted Nightjar
Nom scientifique Caprimulgus fraenatus Eurostopodus argus
Ordre Caprimulgiformes Caprimulgiformes
Famille Caprimulgidae Caprimulgidae
Statut de conservation Least Concern Least Concern
Longueur
Envergure 32,4 cm (12.8 in) 42,7 cm (16.8 in)
Poids 60,0 g (2.12 oz) 102,5 g (3.62 oz)
Régime alimentaire Feeds at night on flying insects including moths and beetles; hunts with buoyant erratic flight … Aerial insectivore; hawks large moths, beetles, and flying insects at dusk and dawn over Australian …
Taille de la couvée 1-2 1
Population Trend
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Habitat Comparison

Habitats partagés

Sombre Nightjar only

Aucun(e)

Spotted Nightjar only

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Song & Call Comparison

Sombre Nightjar

Chant

Monotonous churring trill; repetitive 'churr' at moderate tempo from East African scrub; lower-pitched and less musical than some relatives; calls persistently at night

Spotted Nightjar

Chant

Loud churring 'good-lord-deliver-us' repeated at dusk; melodic bubbling quality; also emits hollow 'cow-cow-cow' series and soft frog-like croaking

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Geographic Range & Migration

Sombre Nightjar

Found across East Africa from Ethiopia and Somalia south to Tanzania. Resident in dry acacia scrub, thornbush, and arid savanna at low elevations.

Spotted Nightjar

Resident and partial migrant of open woodland, grassland, and scrub across mainland Australia and migrating to New Guinea and Indonesia in winter.

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Statut de conservation

Least Concern

Sombre Nightjar

Least Concern

Spotted Nightjar

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How to Tell Them Apart

Sombre Nightjar

Plumage

Uniformly dark sooty-brown upperparts with dense blackish vermiculations; pale buff supercilium and narrow white submoustachial stripe; underparts barred buff and dark brown. Sexes similar.

Spotted Nightjar

Plumage

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 …

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About These Birds

Sombre Nightjar

A medium-sized nightjar (23-25 cm) with cryptic grey-brown plumage and a pale collar. Nocturnal and insectivorous, hawking moths and beetles in flight. Found in open woodland and savanna across sub-Saharan Africa from Ethiopia to South Africa. Resident or short-distance migrant.

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.

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