Jennifer, thanks for the query.
I might revise that report. I was thinking poorwill because it seemed stockier
than a nighthawk. But I've only seen one of each of these perching, in my
lifetime. Usually I've seen them flying. However, the wings on this one did
protrude beyond the tail, and now that I've checked the field guide, I think
that would point to nighthawk. I thought of flushing it to get a better I.D.,
but didn't want to disturb it.
The sizes of these birds is hard to gauge. In flight, nighthawks seem rather
big; but this thing perched seemed rather small. Many years ago, in South
Padre, I found a nightjar that had gotten itself trapped between two sets of
glass doors in a hotel. It was dazed. It was either a Paraque or
Chuck-Will's-Widow (seems they're even harder to identify close-up), but
holding it in my hands it seemed GIGANTIC. (I set it outside under a hedge to
recover, which I think it did as I checked there later.)
Bill
On Thursday, August 19, 2021, 10:27:52 PM CDT, Jennifer Miller
<foundnatureblog@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Poorwill or nighthawk? I’ve seen nighthawks sit on fences, but not
poorwills...although there is a first time for everything! Either way, thanks
for letting us know. I haven’t seen either in quite some time :/
Jennifer
Jennifer MillerLubbock, TX
(o,o) /)_) " "Email: foundnatureblog@xxxxxxxxx
Blog: https://foundnature.weebly.com/
On Aug 19, 2021, at 9:25 PM, WILLIAM WENTHE <wwenthe@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Had a poorwill sitting on the rail of an iron fence on Wednesday (8/18), in
Hockley County.
Bill Wenthe
