• Subfamily Chordeilinae- Nighthawks

Chordeiles minor- Common Nighthawk

View range map of Common Nighthawk here.

The Common Nighthawk is fairly common in woodlands, suburbs and towns across North America during the summer months. The courtship display flight of the male Common Nighthawk is spectacular, involving steep dives with an abrupt up turn a few feet from the ground. The air rushing through his wings makes a deep booming sound. This species winters in Central and South America, and undertakes one of the longest seasonal migrations of any North American bird. The Common Nighthawk is most active at dawn and dusk, not at night. It pursues insects in flight (aerial hawking). No nest is constructed; the birds nest directly on the ground and on flat roofs in urban areas. The two white eggs are incubated by the female for about 18 days. She will orient her body to shade the eggs and may move them with her bill to keep them cool. The male will defend the nest by diving on intruders. The chicks are semiprecocial, down covered and able to move around the day after hatching. The female broods the chicks for the first 15 days and the male feeds them. During this time he will also bring food to the female. After the chicks fledge at around 23 days of age, the male continues to feed them and the female begins a second clutch. Spraying of pesticides in urban areas to control mosquito populations has caused a decline in numbers of Common Nighthawks. Also, the trend away from flat gravel roofs to smooth rubber roofs which are not suitable for nesting has impacted urban populations. The placing of gravel areas on these rubber roofs has replaced some lost nesting sites. Common Nighthawks are frequently the victims of collisions with vehicles as they hunt for insects or roost on gravel roads.

• Subfamily Caprimulginae- Nightjars
• There are no flock members in this subfamily.