Caprimulgus Indicus
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''Caprimulgus'' is a large and very widespread
genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of
nightjar Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal or crepuscular birds in the family Caprimulgidae and order Caprimulgiformes, characterised by long wings, short legs, and very short bills. They are sometimes called bugeaters, their primary source of food ...
s, medium-sized
nocturnal Nocturnality is a ethology, behavior in some non-human animals characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatur ...
bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...
s with long pointed wings, short legs and short bills. ''Caprimulgus'' is derived from the Latin ''capra'', "nanny goat", and ''mulgere'', "to milk", referring to an old myth that nightjars suck milk from goats. The common name "nightjar", first recorded in 1630, refers to the nocturnal habits of the bird, the second part of the name deriving from the distinctive churring song. ''Caprimulgus'' nightjars are found around
Afro-Eurasia Afro-Eurasia (also Afroeurasia and Eurafrasia) is a landmass comprising the continents of Africa, Asia, and Europe. The terms are compound (linguistics), compound words of the names of its constituent parts. Afro-Eurasia has also been called th ...
and
Australasia Australasia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising Australia, New Zealand (overlapping with Polynesia), and sometimes including New Guinea and surrounding islands (overlapping with Melanesia). The term is used in a number of different context ...
, and like other nightjars they usually nest on the ground. They are mostly active in the late evening and early morning or at night, and feed predominantly on moths and other large flying insects. Most have small feet, of little use for walking, and their soft plumage is cryptically coloured to resemble bark or leaves. Some species, unusually for birds, perch along a branch, rather than across it, which helps to conceal them during the day. Temperate species are strongly migratory, wintering in the tropics. ''Caprimulgus'' species have relatively long bills and rictal bristles. Many have repetitive and often mechanical songs.


Taxonomy

The
genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
''Caprimulgus'' was introduced in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist
Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...
in the tenth edition of his ''
Systema Naturae ' (originally in Latin written ' with the Orthographic ligature, ligature æ) is one of the major works of the Sweden, Swedish botanist, zoologist and physician Carl Linnaeus (1707–1778) and introduced the Linnaean taxonomy. Although the syste ...
''. The
type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...
is the
European nightjar The European nightjar (''Caprimulgus europaeus''), common goatsucker, Eurasian nightjar or just nightjar is a crepuscular and nocturnal bird in the nightjar family that breeds across most of Europe and the Palearctic to Mongolia and Northweste ...
(''Caprimulgus europaeus''). The name is the
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
word for a nightjar; it combines ''capra'' meaning "nanny goat" and ''mulgere'' meaning "to milk". The myth that nightjars suck milk from goats is recounted by
Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/24 79), known in English as Pliny the Elder ( ), was a Roman Empire, Roman author, Natural history, naturalist, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the Roman emperor, emperor Vesp ...
in his ''
Natural History Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...
'': "Those called goat-suckers, which resemble a rather large blackbird, are night thieves. They enter the shepherds' stalls and fly to the goats' udders in order to suck their milk, which injures the udder and makes it perish, and the goats they have milked in this way gradually go blind."


Species

The genus contains 39 species. * Red-necked nightjar, ''Caprimulgus ruficollis'' * Jungle nightjar, ''Caprimulgus indicus'' * Grey nightjar, ''Caprimulgus jotaka'' (sometimes included in ''C. indicus'') * Palau nightjar, ''Caprimulgus phalaena'' *
European nightjar The European nightjar (''Caprimulgus europaeus''), common goatsucker, Eurasian nightjar or just nightjar is a crepuscular and nocturnal bird in the nightjar family that breeds across most of Europe and the Palearctic to Mongolia and Northweste ...
, ''Caprimulgus europaeus'' * Sombre nightjar, ''Caprimulgus fraenatus'' * Rufous-cheeked nightjar, ''Caprimulgus rufigena'' * Egyptian nightjar, ''Caprimulgus aegyptius'' * Sykes's nightjar, ''Caprimulgus mahrattensis'' * Nubian nightjar, ''Caprimulgus nubicus'' * Golden nightjar, ''Caprimulgus eximius'' *
Jerdon's nightjar Jerdon's nightjar (''Caprimulgus atripennis'') is a medium-sized nightjar species native to southern India and Sri Lanka. Formerly considered as a subspecies of the long-tailed nightjar, it is best recognized by its distinctive call which sounds l ...
''Caprimulgus atripennis'' *
Large-tailed nightjar The large-tailed nightjar (''Caprimulgus macrurus'') is a species of nightjar known for its distinctive long, broad tail and cryptic plumage that allows it to blend into its surroundings. Found along the southern Himalayan foothills, eastern So ...
, ''Caprimulgus macrurus'' *
Mees's nightjar Mees's nightjar (''Caprimulgus meesi'') is a member of the nightjar family (Caprimulgidae) described as new to science in 2004. It is a representative of the large-tailed nightjar complex found on Flores and Sumba, Indonesia. Previously unrecogn ...
, ''Caprimulgus meesi'' * Timor nightjar, ''Caprimulgus ritae'' * Andaman nightjar, ''Caprimulgus andamanicus'' * Philippine nightjar, ''Caprimulgus manillensis'' * Sulawesi nightjar, ''Caprimulgus celebensis'' * Donaldson Smith's nightjar, ''Caprimulgus donaldsoni'' * Fiery-necked nightjar, ''Caprimulgus pectoralis'' * Montane nightjar, ''Caprimulgus poliocephalus'' * Indian nightjar, ''Caprimulgus asiaticus'' * Madagascar nightjar, ''Caprimulgus madagascariensis'' *
Swamp nightjar The swamp nightjar or Natal nightjar (''Caprimulgus natalensis'') is a crepuscular and nocturnal bird in the nightjar family found in Africa. Distribution and habitat It is found in Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Chad, Republic of the Cong ...
, ''Caprimulgus natalensis'' *
Nechisar nightjar The Nechisar nightjar (''Caprimulgus solala'') is a hypothetical species of nightjar in the family Caprimulgidae. It is endemic to Ethiopia. The species was first discovered in 1990 when researchers discovered a decomposing specimen in the Nec ...
''Caprimulgus solala'' * Plain nightjar, ''Caprimulgus inornatus'' * Star-spotted nightjar, ''Caprimulgus stellatus'' * Savanna nightjar, ''Caprimulgus affinis'' * Chirruping nightjar, ''Caprimulgus griseatus'' * Freckled nightjar, ''Caprimulgus tristigma'' * Bonaparte's nightjar, ''Caprimulgus concretus'' * Salvadori's nightjar, ''Caprimulgus pulchellus'' * Prigogine's nightjar, ''Caprimulgus prigoginei'' * Bates's nightjar, ''Caprimulgus batesi'' * Long-tailed nightjar, ''Caprimulgus climacurus'' * Slender-tailed nightjar, ''Caprimulgus clarus'' * Square-tailed nightjar, ''Caprimulgus fossii'' *
Standard-winged nightjar The standard-winged nightjar (''Caprimulgus longipennis'') is a nocturnal bird in the nightjar family. Previously placed with the pennant-winged nightjar (''Caprimulgus vexillarius'') in their own genus, ''Macrodipteryx'', it is native to Afric ...
, ''Caprimulgus longipennis'' * Pennant-winged nightjar, ''Caprimulgus vexillarius''


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Caprimulgus Bird genera Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus