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By Ryen Nielsen

Teacher/Intern

When we think of migrating birds, we normally think of the blush of color warblers bring to the treetops in spring, or the iconic flying V’s of geese in the fall, but some birds start yearning for their winter homes early as the end of summer nears.

The common nighthawk (Chordeiles minor) is a frequently heard bird on summer evenings. Their distinctive low, buzzy peent call is often the only indicator of their presence. If you’re lucky enough, sometimes you can make out their long-winged shapes swooping in the dim light as they hunt for flying insects.

Even though the word “hawk” is in their name, common nighthawks are not raptors, and are instead found in the nightjar family, which includes other birds like whip-or-wills. While the white bars on their wings can help with identification at dawn and dusk while they’re hunting, they are incredibly well camouflaged during the day often appearing to be just another branch on a tree, or board on a fence, depending on their roosting location. Nightjars are insectivorous, meaning they’re reliant on insects for food. This allows them to be less picky about their habitats. They’re partial to any kind of open or semi-open habitat that gives them plenty of room to fly around, like forests clearings, downtowns, prairies, farmland, etc. They maintain a very wide range and can be found across the entire United States.

Despite their widespread range, common nighthawks will all congregate together once migration really kicks off in August. Birds from all over the country flood into the Mississippi flyway and flock down towards their wintering grounds in southern South America. This migration is one of the longest migrations of any North American bird, clocking in at a whopping 6,200 miles, with most of these birds settling in Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil by October. To make their journey even more incredible, common nighthawks choose to fly through Florida and over the Caribbean Sea rather than continuing their journey over land through Mexico.

In the spring, common nighthawks start their northbound journey in March and follow essentially the same route they took southbound, arriving in the United States around mid-May. Perhaps most impressively, common nighthawks return to their same territory every year. Ornithologists (scientists who study birds) that have been tracking their migration have even recaptured birds within half a mile of where they’d captured them the previous year. That’s some faithful flying!

Unfortunately, the once common nighthawk is becoming less and less so. Their populations have been declining since the 1960s and we’ve now lost approximately 60% of these birds. This decline can be attributed to an increase in pesticide use, habitat loss, and even vehicle collisions. Since these birds fly so far and are most active at dawn and dusk, it can be difficult to follow and study them, so much of their natural history remains a mystery, making it even more crucial that we conserve the birds we have left.

Nature Center Events

Aug.7: Game and Fish Building Fairgrounds: Touch tables with naturalist, 5-7 p.m.

Aug. 8: Game and Fish Building Fairgrounds: Touch tables with naturalist, 5-7 p.m.

Aug. 9: Game and Fish Building Fairgrounds: snake with naturalist, 5-7 p.m.

Aug.10: Free naturalist led hike, 10-11 a.m.

Aug.10: Free naturalist led hike, 1-2 p.m.

Aug.15: Senior Special Program, 10-11 a.m.

Aug.15: Family Nature Program, 1-2 p.m.

Aug.15: Free Nature Play Activities, 1-4 p.m.

Aug.17: Bus Trip to Henderson Hummingbird Hurrah, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Aug.17: Sola Fide Observatory Open House, 9-11 a.m.

Aug. 23: Free Spiders & Webs presentation by Larry Weber, 6:30-7:30 p.m.

Aug. 24: Sola Fide Observatory Open House, 9-11 a.m.