[order] Caprimulgiformes | [family] Caprimulgidae | [latin] Lurocalis semitorquatus | [UK] Short-tailed Nighthawk | [FR] Engoulevent a queue courte | [DE] Bandernachtschwalbe | [ES] Chotacabra de Cola Corta | [IT] Caprimulgo-sparviero dal semicollare | [NL] Kortstaartnachtzwaluw
Subspecies
| Genus | Species | subspecies | Breeding Range | Breeding Range 2 | Non Breeding Range |
| Lurocalis | semitorquatus | LA | widespread | ||
| Lurocalis | semitorquatus | nattereri | Amazonia south of the Amazon to n Argentina | ||
| Lurocalis | semitorquatus | noctivagus | Costa Rica to nw Ecuador | ||
| Lurocalis | semitorquatus | schaeferi | Aragua (n Venezuela) | ||
| Lurocalis | semitorquatus | semitorquatus | n Colombia to the Guianas and n Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago | ||
| Lurocalis | semitorquatus | stonei | se Mexico to ne Nicaragua |
Physical charateristics
Very short, square tail; rather long, somewhat pointed wings. Blackish above, speckled with rufous; throat white, remaining underparts dark brown barred with black; tail dark brown; wings dark without white band. At rest, wings extend well beyond tail.
Listen to the sound of Short-tailed Nighthawk
[audio:http://www.aviflevoland.nl/sounddb/S/Short-tailed Nighthawk.mp3]
Copyright remark: Most sounds derived from xeno-canto
| wingspan min.: | 0 | cm | wingspan max.: | 0 | cm |
| size min.: | 19 | cm | size max.: | 29 | cm |
| incubation min.: | 22 | days | incubation max.: | 24 | days |
| fledging min.: | 24 | days | fledging max.: | 25 | days |
| broods: | 1 | eggs min.: | 1 | ||
| eggs max.: | 1 |
Range
Honduras to northern Argentina and southern Brazil.
Habitat
Humid forest and forest edges in lowlands and foothills.
Reproduction
The species roosts by day high in forest trees, and unlike other species in the family, nests on horizontal limbs in the canopy. Nest site is near clearings, open woodland or roadsided forest. Clutch size is 1 egg, incubated for about 22 days. Young fledge after 22 days.
Feeding habits
The Short-tailed Nighthawk is crepuscular, usally feeding in and above the forest canopy, but sometimes coming lower out over clearings, roads, or rivers. Like all nightjars, Short-taileds eat insects captured in flight.
Conservation
This species has a large range, with an estimated global extent of occurrence of 8,400,000 km2. The global population size has not been quantified, but it is believed to be large as the species is described as ‘frequent’ in at least parts of its range (Stotz et al. 1996). Global population trends have not been quantified, but the species is not believed to approach the thresholds for the population decline criterion of the IUCN Red List (i.e., declining more than 30% in ten years or three generations). For these reasons, the species is evaluated as Least Concern.
Migration
Resident throughout range.
Distribution map
Literature
Title THE SHORT-TAILED NIGHTHAWK IS A TREE NESTER
Author(s): GILLES SEUTIN and MARK LETZER
Abstract: A nest of the Short-tailedN ighthawk, Lurocalis se..[more]..
Source: J. Field Ornithol., 66(1):30-36
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