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Australian Owlet-nightjar (Aegotheles cristatus) Alternate name(s): "Little Nightjar", "Banded Goat-sucker", "Crested Goat-sucker", "Moth Owl" Aboriginal name(s): "cristatus": "yeRata kurrk" [tjapwurrung]; "yoodjyn" (WA); "teringing" Size: 19-25 cm; wing span: 36-44 cm Body mass: 35-65 g Wing loading [g/cm2]: 0.11-0.14

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Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Australian Owlet-nightjars are the smallest Australian nocturnal birds. Their plumage can have 4 different morphologies (all 4 are possible for the continental race "cristatus"). The four possible morphologies are orange-grey (most of the continent), orange (in the arid inland), dark-grey (in coastal areas) and pale-grey. The front is lighter than the back for all morphologies. The head has a dark stripe along the crown and dark rings around each eye and eye patch. The front can be lightly barred, the back and tail are also lightly barred. Around the dark-grey bill they have prominent "whiskers". The irises are orange-brown; the legs and feet are grey to pinkish-grey.

Taxonomy, classification See Australian Owlet-nightjar at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Australian Owlet-nightjar is available HERE . Apart from Australia, there have been some reports of Australian Owlet-nightjars found in south-western New Guinea. There are two races of Australian Owlet-nightjars. Nominate race "cristatus" populates almost the entire Australian continent. Only in some parts, such as the most arid regions near Lake Eyre, the Nullarbor and the Pilbara, South of the Kimberley (but also the north-eastern corner of the NT, including Arnhemland), they are found only occasionally, when conditions are right for them to find sufficient prey. Race "tasmanicus" is, as the name already indicates, endemic to Tasmania. Australian Owlet-nightjars usually live in woodland, in particular where there are trees with suitable hollows (usually eucalypts). Where to look? How to find this species? Although in general not easy to find, there is a promising systematic approach to spotting Australian Owlet-nightjars. In the first instance, spot-lighting in native woodland can be used to determine where the species is present (either by seeing them in flight or by hearing their calls. Then, if one wants to take photos or have a leisurely view, in order to overcome the difficulty of locking onto a bird in flight at night, one can try to come back in daytime and try to find an Australian Owlet-nightjars sticking its head out of one of its roosting hollows. Since they do occasionally call during the daytime, one can again potentially be guided by their calls.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "cristatus" We first spotted an Australian Owlet-nightjar, race "cristatus", in September 2008 on the western fringes of Mt. Kaputar NP, in Deriah Aboriginal Area, about 30 km East of Narrabri, NSW. Since then we hear them calling there (even during daylight hours) semi-regularly. They are also found by us in various locations in inland NSW. C. Hayne reports that an Australian Owlet-nightjar, race "cristatus", was seen 5 km North of Moree, NSW, on a dead tree close to the Gwydir River in December 2009 and on the Moree Common in April 2014. B. Hensen reports spotting a pair of Australian Owlet-nightjars, race "cristatus", regularly for about a month at St. Albans, NSW, in February 2011, and then again in February 2018. A. Ross-Taylor reports spotting an Australian Owlet-nightjar, race "cristatus", in high-altitude (1000 m) rainforest at O'Reilly's Plateau, Lamington NP, Gold Coast, QLD, in March 2014. B. Hensen reports finding an Australian Owlet-nightjar, race "cristatus", at Casuarina Coastal Reserve, Darwin, NT, in July 2019. In November 2021, P. Brown also found an Australian Owlet-nightjar, race "cristatus", at Casuarina Coastal Reserve, Darwin, NT.

Photos

Race "cristatus"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Rufous-grey morphology

Frontal view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar peeking out of its hollow (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[St. Alban's, NSW, February 2011]

Frontal/ventral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar looking sideways
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, September 2008]

Near-lateral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar on a Pandanus stump (photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Casuarina Coastal Reserve, Darwin, NT, November 2021]

Lateral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar peeking out of its hollow (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[St. Alban's, NSW, February 2011]

Lateral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar looking towards the observer
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, September 2008]

Lateral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar; note the "hairy" appearance of the feathers on its head
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, September 2008]

Dorsal/ventral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar looking backwards
[Deriah Aboriginal Area, NSW, September 2008]

Dark-grey morphology

Close-up lateral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar in brilliant sunlight (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[St. Albans, NSW, February 2018]

Pale-grey morphology

Close-up frontal view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2026]

Close-up near-lateral portrait of an Australian Owlet-nightjar, eye wide open
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2026]

Close-up near-lateral portrait of an Australian Owlet-nightjar, eye half shut
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2026]

Close-up near-lateral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar, eye half shut
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2026]

Grey morphology with orange face and collar

Frontal view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar looking out of its hollow (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Eulah Creek, NSW, November 2018]

Frontal view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar looking sideways
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2018]

Lateral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar looking sideways
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2018]

Lateral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar with its head turned sideways and eyes closed
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2018]

Near-dorsal/ventral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar looking at the observer (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Casuarina Coastal Reserve, Darwin, NT, July 2019]

Near-dorsal/ventral view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Casuarina Coastal Reserve, Darwin, NT, July 2019]

Location of an Australian Owlet-nightjar hollow in a major trunk of a eucalypt tree; click on image to see the bird's head right at the centre
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2018]

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Territorial

Mobility: Sedentary

Elementary unit: Solitary

As opposed to various species of nightjars known to us, Australian Owlet-nightjars do perch on shrubs or trees; they use tree hollows for roosting and have not been found by us on the ground yet.

Frontal view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar looking out of its hollow, in this case with a wide opening
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[JC Slaughter Falls, Brisbane, QLD, May 2020]

Frontal view of an Australian Owlet-nightjar looking out of its hollow, here with a narrow opening
[Eulah Creek, NSW, August 2018]

Food, Diet

Australian Owlet-nightjars are insect hunters.

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

ozowlet_20231129.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	Contact calls?	© MD
ozowlet_20191014.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	Contact calls?	© MD
ozowlet_20191203_7.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	Contact calls?	© MD
ozowlet_20240227_3.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	Tyto owl-like screeching calls	© MD
ozowlet_20240227_4.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD
ozowlet_20191203_2.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD
ozowlet_20191203_3.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD
ozowlet_20191203_5.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD
ozowlet_20191203_6.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD
ozowlet_20191203.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD
ozowlet_20240914.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD

The call sequence of an Australian Owlet-nightjar can be very slow. The following recording, taken during daylight hours (at about 8:30 in the morning), has calls separated by about 20 seconds each.

ozowlet_20140519_3.mp3

cristatus (NW NSW)

Contact calls

© MD

On the night of 5-6 December 2022 and again on 26-27 February 2024 we recorded Australian Owlet-nightjars using a variety of calls.

ozowlet_20221205_2.mp3	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD
ozowlet_20221205_5.mp3	cristatus (NW NSW)	Tyto owl-like screeching calls	© MD
ozowlet_20221205_6.mp3	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD
ozowlet_20221205_7.mp3	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD
ozowlet_20221205_8.mp3	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD
ozowlet_20240227_5.m4a	cristatus (NW NSW)	?	© MD

More Australian Owlet-nightjar sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

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