Nyctidromus 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 ...

nightjars 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 b ...

in the family Caprimulgidae. The species are widely distributed in Central and South America.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Nyctidromus'' was introduced in 1838 by the English ornithologist

John Gould John Gould (; 14 September 1804 – 3 February 1881) was an English ornithologist who published monographs on birds, illustrated by plates produced by his wife, Elizabeth Gould (illustrator), Elizabeth Gould, and several other artists, includ ...

to accommodate his newly described ''Nyctidromus derbyanus''. This taxon is therefore 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 ...

; it 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

pauraque The pauraque (''Nyctidromus albicollis'') – also called the common pauraque to distinguish it from similar species – is a nightjar species, one of two birds in the genus ''Nyctidromus''. It breeds in the subtropical and tropical regio ...

, ''Nyctidromus albicollis'' (

Gmelin Gmelin may refer to: * Karl Christian Gmelin, Carl Christian Gmelin (1762–1837), German botanist, author of ''Flora Badensis, Alsatica et confinium regionum cis- et transrhenania'' (1806) * Charles Gmelin (1872–1950), British Olympic athlete * ...

) 1789. 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 ...

''nukti-'' meaning "nocturnal" or "night-" with ''-dromos'' meaning "-racer" (from ''trekhō'' "to run"). The genus contains two species: *

Pauraque The pauraque (''Nyctidromus albicollis'') – also called the common pauraque to distinguish it from similar species – is a nightjar species, one of two birds in the genus ''Nyctidromus''. It breeds in the subtropical and tropical regio ...

, ''Nyctidromus albicollis'' * Anthony's nightjar, ''Nyctidromus anthonyi''

References

Bird genera Birds of Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena {{Caprimulgiformes-stub