European Nightjar

How to identify

Field marks

1. Adults of the nominate subspecies have gray-brown upperparts with streaks
2. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a pale yellowish-brown collar on the nape
3. Adults of the nominate subspecies have a white moustachial stripe
4. Long, pointed wings

Male, female and young

In flight, the male shows white on the upperwing and at the tips of the outer tail feathers; the female shows no white; fledged juveniles resemble the female.

Voice

The male gives a sustained trill, singing continuously for up to 10 minutes at a time.

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: May · Most records: Israel, Türkiye, United Arab Emirates

European Nightjar has been recorded at 628 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 87 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

1. Jerusalem Bird ObservatoryIsrael659 records
2. Aras Kuş Halkalama İstasyonuTürkiye457 records
3. Private estate near Green MubazzarahUnited Arab Emirates375 records

Countries and regions with the most records

IsraelTürkiyeUnited Arab EmiratesUnited KingdomSpainPortugalGreeceKenya

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The European nightjar (Caprimulgus europaeus), common goatsucker, Eurasian nightjar or just nightjar is a crepuscular and nocturnal bird in the nightjar family that breeds across most of Europe and the Palearctic to Mongolia and Northwestern China. The Latin generic name refers to the old myth that the nocturnal nightjar suckled from goats, causing them to cease to give milk. The six subspecies differ clinally, the birds becoming smaller and paler towards the east of the range.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions