NIGHTHAWKS 181 



noted there August 23 and September 9 (1889), and at 

 Greensboro, September 11, 12, 22, and 23 (1887). 



General habits. — ^Unlike its relatives, the whip-poor-will and 

 the chuck-will's-widow, the nighthawk is both nocturnal and 

 diurnal. It does most of its hunting in the early morning 

 and evening, but it is not at all unusual to see many of the 

 birds feeding in bright sunshine; their notes may be heard, 

 also, more or less throughout the night. 



It is a most graceful and accomplished flyer and secures 

 its prey entirely on the wing. When feeding, the flight is 

 erratic and batlike, but when migrating or passing from one 

 section to another, the bird flies swiftly, with steady, straight- 

 forward strokes. Its note when feeding sounds like the 

 syllables be-erd. During the nesting season it frequently 

 mounts to a considerable elevation and thence dives with 

 lightninglike speed toward the earth, arresting its progress 

 suddenly by a quick movement of the wings, which produces 

 a loud, booming note, resembling the noise made by blowing 

 into the bunghole of an empty barrel. 



During the heat of the day, the nighthawk usually rests on 

 the limb of a tree, a log, a fence rail, or the ground ; and in all 

 these situations its colors usually harmonize so well with its 

 surroundings as to make it comparatively inconspicuous. 

 When perched on a limb it always sits lengthwise. 



The nighthawk makes no nest, but lays its two eggs on the 

 bare ground or on the flat roof of a house. 



Food habits. — It would be hard to find a bird that is of 

 more service to man than the nighthawk. Provided with an 

 enormous mouth and a stomach capable of great distention, 

 and feeding as it does wholly upon insects, the good it accom- 

 plishes in the course of a year in keeping down the swarm of 

 insect pests is incalculable. Winged ants are a favorite food, 

 having been found in nearly half the stomachs examined by 

 Prof. Beal, in the Biological Survey. Other insects frequently 

 eaten are May beetles, leaf hoppers, grasshoppers, gnats, and 

 mosquitoes. Potato beetles and squash beetles are occasional- 

 ly taken, as well as the destructive cotton-boll weevil. This 

 pest has been found in a number of stomachs and doubtless is 



