Common Nighthawk
(Chordeiles minor)
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Biology • Distribution • Taxonomy
Conservation Status |
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| IUCN Red List | LC - Least Concern |
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| NatureServe | N5B - Secure Breeding and Nonbreeding SNRB - Unranked Breeding |
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| Minnesota | not listed Species in Greatest Conservation Need |
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Description |
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Size |
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8½″ to 10″ in length 24″ wingspan |
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Voice |
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Similar Species |
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Habitat |
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Breeding: Forest openings, bogs, rocky outcroppings, beaches, gravel roofs Migration: Anywhere with large numbers of insects |
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Biology |
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Migration |
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Mid-April to mid-October |
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Nesting |
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Food |
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Mostly flying ants, beetles, and true bugs. Also moths, mayflies, caddisflies, flies, wasps, crickets, grasshoppers, and other insects. |
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Distribution |
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Occurrence |
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Common migrant and breeder |
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Maps |
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The Minnesota Ornithologists’ Union All Seasons Species Occurrence Map |
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Taxonomy |
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| Class | Aves (birds) | ||
Order |
Caprimulgiformes (nightjars, swifts, hummingbirds, and allies) | ||
Family |
Caprimulgidae (nightjars and nighthawks) | ||
Genus |
Chordeiles (typical nighthawks) | ||
Subordinate Taxa |
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Anserri Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor aserriensis) Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor neotropicalis) Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor panamensis) Florida Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor chapmani) Howell’s Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor howelli) Northern Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor minor) Pacific Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor hesperis) Sennett’s Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor sennetti) Western Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor henryi) |
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Synonyms |
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Caprimulgus minor |
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Visitor Photos |
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Share your photo of this bird. |
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Lynn Rubey |
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An adult male Common Nighthawk perched on a branch on the granite outcroppings in The Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge in Lac qui Parle County. Females have a tan neck markings instead of white, females also lack the white tail band. |
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An adult male Common Nighthawk in flight this one circled overhead until I backed away so I avoided the area so not to upset the Common Nighthawk. This one has the white tail band that one can see in flight. In The Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge in Lac qui Parle County on the granite outcropping. |
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The Adult Male Common Nighthawk is a nocturnal bird belonging to the Nightjar family, even though it appeared to be sleeping it kept an eye on me walking down to the dock in The Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge. Its intracate color pattern enables this bird to blend in with its surrounding. A wildlife officer was kind enough to let me know where this one was hanging out at. |
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MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos |
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Slideshows |
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| Common Nighthawk Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren |
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| Common Nighthawk JMC Nature Photos |
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| Have you heard the sound of the Common Nighthawk? aparlement2 |
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About
Uploaded on Oct 1, 2011 http://www.videobash.com Macaulay Library Curator Greg Budney shares a close encounter he had with a Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor) as it called & produced sizzling wing sounds just over his head. |
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Visitor Videos |
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Share your video of this bird. |
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Other Videos |
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| Common Nighthawk - Antelope Island State Park Stoil Ivanov |
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About
Published on Jun 25, 2013 Common Nighthawk ( Chordeiles minor ) Filmed at Antelope Island State Park Utah on 6-10-2013 . I found this bird on a rock pile and had to climb on top of a rock to shoot little jitter in the video. |
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| Chordeiles minor Oscar Ramírez |
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About
Published on Mar 9, 2014 Chordeiles minor, Common Nighthawk |
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| Common Nighthawk Jan Dolphijn |
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About
Uploaded on Apr 26, 2009 http://www.avibirds.com/euhtml/Common_Nighthawk.html |
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| Common Nighthawk Andrew Reago |
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About
Published on Aug 19, 2012 Mike Thelen discovered this Common NIghthawk perched upon a tree blowing in the wind at Tower Grove Park in St. Louis Missouri on 8/19/12. What a delight! Thanks Mike, this video is for you. There are some very intimate/private moments where the bird 'shats' in this video that are quite intriguing and highly recommended viewing. |
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Visitor Sightings |
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Report a sighting of this bird. |
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| This button not working for you? Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com. Be sure to include a location. |
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| Lynn Rubey 6/9/2020 |
Location: Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge An adult male Common Nighthawk perched on a branch on the granite outcroppings in The Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge in Lac qui Parle County. Females have a tan neck markings instead of white, females also lack the white tail band. |
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| Lynn Rubey 8/9/2019 |
Location: Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge The Adult Male Common Nighthawk is a nocturnal bird belonging to the Nightjar family, even though it appeared to be sleeping it kept an eye on me walking down to the dock in The Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge. Its intracate color pattern enables this bird to blend in with its surrounding. A wildlife officer was kind enough to let me know where this one was hanging out at. |
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| Big Wegs 8/19/2018 |
Location: Duluth, MN Thousands are flying this evening. I believe their migration funnels them through Duluth because they won’t fly over Lake Superior. |
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MinnesotaSeasons.com Sightings |
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