WESTERN BIRDS Nighthawk 



Though they also come out at night to pursue their prey 

 among the insects of the air, they do not wait until it is 

 really dark but may be seen flying late in the afternoon, 

 and venturing out also on cloudy days, where they skim 

 over marshy meadows, lakes or sage-covered uplands in 

 their graceful swallow-like flight. In the east they are 

 often seen in the city streets circling among the big 

 buildings, where they lay their eggs on the flat graveled 

 roofs in a most friendly way. While in most cases our 

 western birds are not so friendly, yet in their northern 

 ranges they are invading the cities as do their eastern 

 cousins. 



These birds are summer residents only, and in their 

 southern range seen only in migration. 



The Pacific Nighthawk breeds from southwestern 

 British Columbia south along the coast to northern 

 California and in the Sierra Nevada south to the San 

 Bernardino Mountains, southern California. Winter 

 home unknown. They are about nine inches long and 

 have gray upper parts which are mottled with gray and 

 buff; tail is banded with white near the tip, except the 

 middle feathers; wings have white patch; the throat is 

 white, the chest black and the belly barred black and 

 white. The feet of the Nighthawks, like the Poor-Wills, 

 are too weak and small for perching, so the birds spend 

 their resting hours squatting lengthwise on a limb, never 

 perching. The eggs are mottled and are laid on the 

 ground, or roof. The call note is not so pronounced as 

 the Poor- Will although they keep up a sociable short 

 note as they fly about. The long narrow wings with the 

 conspicuous white spots make the bird easy to identify. 



43 



