Red-necked Nightjar

• GeneralIt settles on the ground or lengthways along a branch, and its plumage makes it all but invisible.
• The Iberian Peninsula is the only place in Europe where it breeds.
• Its main non-natural cause of death is being run over: it settles on tarmac and gravel tracks because they hold the heat, which saves it energy in thermoregulation but leaves it exposed to cars.
• It is especially vulnerable in May, on arrival from Africa, when the accidents are concentrated.
• It is the largest Caprimulgus in Europe, and the Iberian Peninsula is the only place on the continent where it breeds. According to the Noctua scheme, its Spanish population fell by 38.6% between 2006 and 2018, which is why the 2021 Red Book of the Birds of Spain classifies it as Vulnerable.

Skeleton type

Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)

Habitat and environment

Pine woods, dehesa and scrub with sandy clearings

Gestation / incubation

14-19 days of incubation: the female incubates by day and both sexes take turns at night

Litter / clutch size

Usually 2 eggs, occasionally just one, laid directly on bare ground or leaf litter

Sources consulted: IUCN Red List · SEO/BirdLife (ficha, III Atlas y Lista Oficial de las Aves de España 2012) · Sáez y Camacho 2016, Enciclopedia Virtual de los Vertebrados Españoles (MNCN-CSIC) · Zoobotánico de Jerez (proyecto de investigación, C.R.A.S.) · Alonso et al. 2003 · Cleere et al. 2013 · Temminck 1820

Best time: From May to October, at twilight, at low and middle altitudes

The pins mark the parks where its presence is documented.