Great eared nightjar

The great eared nightjar (Lyncornis macrotis) is a species of nightjar in the family Caprimulgidae. It is the largest species in the family in terms of length, which can range from 31 to 41 cm (12 to 16 in). Males weigh an average of 131 g (4.6 oz) and females weigh an average of 151 g (5.3 oz) so it the second heaviest species in the family after the nacunda nighthawk.[2]

Great eared nightjar
L. m. macropterus from Sulawesi
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Caprimulgiformes
Family: Caprimulgidae
Genus: Lyncornis
Species:
L. macrotis
Binomial name
Lyncornis macrotis
(Vigors, 1831)
Synonyms
  • Eurostopodus mindanensis

Distribution and habitat

Head

It is found in Southeast Asia with populations in the Western Ghats and Sri Lanka[3] Bangladesh,[1] India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. Its natural habitat is subtropical or moist lowland tropical forests.

Behaviour

Like other nightjars they are active at dusk and at night. They have a distinctive call which includes a sharp tsiik followed by a pause and a two-syllable ba-haaww.

Breeding

The nest is a scrape on the ground and the clutch consists of a single egg. The chicks are well camouflaged among leaf litter.[4]

Taxonomy

Several populations are given subspecies status and include:

  • the nominate form macrotis (Vigors, 1831) from the Philippines
  • bourdilloni (Hume, 1875) of the Western Ghats
  • cerviniceps (Gould, 1838) along the eastern Himalayas into Indochina and northern Malaysia
  • jacobsoni (Junge, 1936) of Simeulue Island
  • macropterus (Bonaparte, 1850) from the islands of Sulawesi, Talaud, Sangihe, Banggai and Sula

References

  1. BirdLife International (2016). "Lyncornis macrotis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T22689690A93242897. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22689690A93242897.en. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
  2. CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses, 2nd Edition by John B. Dunning Jr. (Editor). CRC Press (2008), ISBN 978-1-4200-6444-5.
  3. Soysa, W. C., A. A. T. Amarasinghe and D. M. S. S. Karunarathna (2007). A record of the Great Eared Nightjar Eurostopodus macrotis Vigors, 1830 (Aves: Caprimulgidae), from Sri Lanka, Siyoth, 2 (1): 88-90.
  4. Strijk JS (2004). "Description of the nest and nestling of Great Eared Nightjar Eurostopodus macrotis from Luzon, Philippines" (PDF). Forktail. 20: 128–129. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-06-10.


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