GOATSUCKERS, HUMMING-BIRDS, ETC. 239 



NIGHTHAWK 



The Nighthawk, or Bull Bat, often miscalled whip- 

 poor-will, migrates in immense flocks, arriving in the Great 

 Lakes region about the second week in May. ^lany pairs 

 spend the summer in thickly settled districts, even raising 

 their young on the roofs of residences and office buildings in 

 cities. Open places, rocky hillsides, and stony pastures are 

 favorite haunts, furnishing ample protection for the duU- 

 plimiaged bird. The name nighthawk is rather misleading, 

 as the birds are not hawks, and seem to be equally at home 

 on sunny days, cloudy weather, or after dusk. 



In June, 1910, I found two young on a bare, flat lime- 

 stone slab, where the only concealment was by means of 

 protective coloration. The little fellows harmonized per- 

 fectly with the light and shade effect produced by old 

 mullein stalks. The parents were very demonstrative about 

 the young, the female feigning lameness. 



The nighthawk and the whip-poor-will are often con- 

 founded or considered the same species. A careful compar- 

 ison will at once show a very decided difference. The large 

 white patches on the five outer primaries of the wings of the 

 nighthawk are striking field marks in fiight, resembling tat- 

 tered holes. At twilight, or on cloudy days during summer 

 months, great troops of nighthawks may be seen high in air 

 over forest or town in search of insects, performing their 

 wonderful evolutions and uttering their peevish cries, or 

 swooping down with their strange booming or rumbling 

 sound. Thus they continue till the gloaming merges into 



