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13

White-throated Nightjar (Eurostopodus mystacalis) Alternate name(s): "Night Hawk", "Moth Hawk",; misnomers: "Fern Owl", "Laughing Owl" Size: 32-37 cm Weight: 80-155 g

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Similar species

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

Physical description Click here for a physical description White-throated Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal predators. Their plumage is highly cryptic. They are primarily dark grey-brown, with rufous and grey streaking and barring. They have small white spots on both sides of the throat. While perched on the ground, the dark-grey wing tips tend to stick out conspicuously. The eyes are dark-brown and have the typical, unusual form of other nightjars. The small, downward-curved bill is dark-grey. Twitcher's tip They are distinguished from Spotted Nightjars by their more dark-grey general appearance, also in-flight, when their finely barred underparts show. In-flight the main distinction between the two species is that White-throatted Nightjars do not have prominent white spots on their outer primaries, but more prominent white patches on either side of the throat.

Taxonomy, classification See White-throated 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 based on sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the White-throated Nightjar is available HERE . White-throated Nightjars occur in Australia, eastern Indonesia, New Guinea and on the Solomon Islands. Nominate race "mystacalis" breed only in Australia and migrate to the continent from the North via the Torres Strait. In Australia they populate only the eastern coastal fringe and adjacent Great Dividing Range in an up to 300 km wide area, from the eastern half of Cape York peninsula, QLD, all the way down to about Melbourne, VIC. Occasionally, they can be found a bit farther inland, on the western side of the Great Dividing Range. White-throated Nightjars have a preference for (mostly dry) forest and woodland, especially areas with lots of litter (leaves, twigs, bark), which they use for camouflage.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "mystacalis" We first found at least 3 White-throated Nightjars, race "mystacalis", in Deriah Aboriginal Area in February 2014. After their winter absence, White-throated Nightjars, race "mystacalis", returned to Deriah Aboriginal Area in October 2014, when they were heard calling from two locations in a densely wooded gully, close to where they had been found the previous season. In November one White-throated Nightjar was seen in-flight and visually identified at the same location. Since then they are heard in the same area every year during the breeding season. In March 2017, late in the season, a White-throated Nightjar, race "mystacalis", was heard calling at Dandry Gorge AA, in the southern Pilliga scrub. In December 2017 a White-throated Nightjar, race "mystacalis", was found at Timmallallie NP, in the Pilliga scrub. M. Adam-Cross reports having heard White-throated Nightjars, race "mystacalis", calling at night during spring and summer in Yarramundi, NSW, for many years.

Photos

Race "mystacalis"

ADULT

Sex unknown

(Bad) lateral view of a White-throated Nightjar on the ground; the white throat is clearly visible; in this shot taken with a flash one can also see that White-throated Nightjars have reflective plumage; this is the bird whose calls were recorded on 9 December 2017
[Timmallallie NP, NSW, December 2017]

Behaviour

White-throated Nightjars usually do not perch on shrubs or trees; they are either found by us on the ground or in the air.

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.

wtnight_20181010_3.m4a	mystacalis (NW NSW)	Contact call	© MD
wtnight_20181010_4.m4a	mystacalis (NW NSW)	Contact call	© MD
wtnight_20191014.m4a	mystacalis (NW NSW)	Contact call	© MD
wtnight_20181010_6.m4a	mystacalis (NW NSW)	Contact calls	© MD
wtnight_20171209.m4a	mystacalis (NW NSW)	Contact calls (with Superb Fairy-wren response)	© MD
wtnight_20181010_2.m4a	mystacalis (NW NSW)	Contact calls (with Eastern Yellow Robin)	© MD
wtnight_20181010.m4a	mystacalis (NW NSW)	Grunting call + contact call (with Eastern Yellow Robin)	© MD
wtnight_20191127.m4a	mystacalis (NW NSW)	Grunting calls	© MD

More White-throated 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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