Ñacundá Nighthawk

About the Ñacundá Nighthawk

The nacunda nighthawk (Chordeiles nacunda) is a species of nightjar in the family Caprimulgidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, and Venezuela. Its natural habitats are dry savanna, subtropical or tropical seasonally wet or flooded lowland grassland, and heavily degraded former forest.

The nacunda nighthawk was formally described in 1817 by the French ornithologist Louis Vieillot under the binomial name Caprimulgus nacunda based on a specimen collected in Paraguay. The species was formerly placed in the monotypic genus Podager, but was moved into the genus Chordeiles based on the results of a 2010 molecular phylogenetic study. The former generic name podager originates from the Latin meaning "a man suffering from gout" and reflects the awkward walking manner of this nighthawk. The specific name nacunda is derived from the Guaraní word for a "big-mouth".

Genetic studies have shown that the Nacunda nighthawk is sister to the much smaller least nighthawk (Chordeiles pusillus). Two subspecies are recognised: C. n. coryi Agne & Pacheco, 2011 – north, east Colombia... Wikipedia →