Savanna Nightjar

How to identify

Field marks

1. Male's outermost two tail feathers almost entirely white
2. Gray-brown overall, with fine white spots and vermiculations
3. Male has an oval white patch on each side of the throat
4. Reddish-brown bill with a black tip

Male, female and young

The male has white patches on the throat and outer tail feathers; the female has a dull throat patch and entirely brown tail feathers; juveniles resemble the female.

Voice

At night, the male gives a high-pitched, sharp, rising call, repeated many times.

Similar species

Grey Nightjar

The male Savanna Nightjar has almost entirely white outer tail feathers; other nightjars, including Grey Nightjar, have only partly white tail feathers.

Large-tailed Nightjar

The male Savanna Nightjar has almost entirely white outer tail feathers; other nightjars, including Large-tailed Nightjar, have only partly white tail feathers.

Where and when it's recorded

Savanna Nightjar has been recorded at 325 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 13 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

1. Nantou – Puli Tzuchi FoundationTaiwan (China)489 records
2. IISER Tirupati – Mangalam CampusIndia413 records
3. Kerala Agricultural UniversityIndia407 records

Countries and regions with the most records

ChinaIndiaSingaporeIndonesiaCambodiaThailandPhilippinesMalaysia

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 savanna nightjar (Caprimulgus affinis), also known as allied nightjar or Franklin's nightjar, is a species of nightjar found in South and Southeast Asia. The IUCN Red List has assessed the species to be of least concern because it has a large range and its population trend is stable. As other nightjars, this nocturnal bird is characterised by its large eyes, gaping mouth and excellent camouflage.

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

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