''Hydropsalis'' is a

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 ...

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 in the family Caprimulgidae. The species are widely distributed across the tropical and subtropical regions of the New World.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Hydropsalis'' was introduced in 1832 by the German naturalist

Johann Georg Wagler Johann Georg Wagler (28 March 1800 – 23 August 1832) was a German herpetologist and ornithologist. Wagler was assistant to Johann Baptist von Spix, and gave lectures in zoology at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich after it was moved t ...

. 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 ...

was designated by

George Robert Gray George Robert Gray (8 July 1808 – 6 May 1872) was an English zoology, zoologist and author, and head of the Ornithology, ornithological section of the British Museum, now the Natural History Museum, London, Natural History Museum, London f ...

in 1855 as ''Caprimulgus furcifer''

Vieillot Louis Pierre Vieillot (10 May 1748, Yvetot – 24 August 1830, Sotteville-lès-Rouen) was a French ornithologist. Vieillot is the author of the first scientific descriptions and Linnaean names of a number of birds, including species he collecte ...

1817. This taxon is now considered as a

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

of the

scissor-tailed nightjar The scissor-tailed nightjar (''Hydropsalis torquata'') is a species of nightjar in the family Caprimulgidae. It is distributed over much of eastern South America. Taxonomy The scissor-tailed nightjar was formally described in 1789 by the Germ ...

(''Hydropsalis torquata''). The genus name combines the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

''hudro-'' meaning "water-" with ''psalis'' meaning "pair of scissors". The genus contains four species: * Ladder-tailed nightjar (''Hydropsalis climacocerca'') *

Scissor-tailed nightjar The scissor-tailed nightjar (''Hydropsalis torquata'') is a species of nightjar in the family Caprimulgidae. It is distributed over much of eastern South America. Taxonomy The scissor-tailed nightjar was formally described in 1789 by the Germ ...

(''Hydropsalis torquata'') * Spot-tailed nightjar (''Hydropsalis maculicaudus'') * White-tailed nightjar (''Hydropsalis cayennensis'')

References

Bird genera Birds of South America Birds of the Guiana Shield Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{caprimulgiformes-stub