Size: The European nightjar is 24.5–28 cm long, with a 52–59 cm wingspan. The male weighs 51–101 g and the female 67–95 g.

Vocalisations: The male European nightjar’s song is a sustained churring trill. The female does not sing, but when on the wing, both sexes give a short cuick, cuick call, also used when chasing predators.
Habitat: pine and mixed forests, clearings, woodlands, swamps.

Behaviour: It is a migratory bird, and winters in Africa. The European nightjar is a bird of dry, open country with some trees and small bushes, such as heaths, commons, moorland, forest clearings or felled or newly planted woodland. The European nightjar is crepuscular and nocturnal. The cryptic plumage makes it difficult to see in the daytime, and birds on the ground. Breeding is normally from late May to August. The European nightjar is normally monogamous. There is no nest, and the eggs are laid on the ground among plants or tree roots, or beneath a bush or tree. The clutch is usually one or two whitish eggs. The European nightjar feeds on a wide variety of flying insects, including moths, beetles, mantises, dragonflies, cockroaches and flies. In Latvia, there are 15,000-23,000 couples.

Interesting facts: The flight on long pointed wings is noiseless, due to their soft plumage, and very buoyant. The Latin name ‘Caprimulgus’ and the old name ‘goatsucker’ both refer to the myth, old even in the time of Aristotle, that nightjars suckled from nanny goats, which subsequently ceased to give milk or went blind.

Photo: pixabay.com