Chuck-will's-widow

The Chuck-will's-widow is the largest member of the nightjar family in North America, a bulky, big-headed nocturnal bird cloaked in intricately mottled rufous-brown, black, and buff plumage that renders it nearly invisible against leaf litter by day. It is far more often heard than seen, its loud, rolling, repetitive song, rendered as "chuck-will's-widow," carrying across warm southeastern nights during the breeding season. Its enormous mouth, unusual among North American birds, allows it to occasionally capture small birds and bats in addition to large flying insects.

Key Field Marks

• Largest North American nightjar, notably bulkier than Whip-poor-wills
• Warm rufous-brown, intricately mottled plumage
• Very large, wide mouth and short bill
• Loud, rolling, four-syllable song: "chuck-will's-widow"

Similar Species

• Eastern Whip-poor-will is smaller, grayer overall, and has a different, faster three-syllable song.
• Common Nighthawk has long, pointed wings with a white bar and flies with erratic, high aerial maneuvers, unlike the Chuck-will's-widow's low, fluttering flight.

Habitat

Chuck-will's-widows favor open pine and mixed pine-oak woodlands, often near clearings, fields, or sandy soil, across the southeastern United States.

Range

They breed from the mid-Atlantic states south through the Southeast and west to Texas and Oklahoma.

Migration

The species winters primarily in Florida, the Caribbean, Central America, and northern South America, arriving on breeding grounds in spring and departing by early fall.

Behavior

Chuck-will's-widows are strictly nocturnal, resting motionless on the ground or a low branch by day and becoming active to forage after dark.

Voice

The loud, rolling "chuck-will's-widow" song is repeated persistently on warm nights, especially around dusk, dawn, and moonlit hours, and is the primary way the species is detected.

Feeding

They capture large flying insects such as moths and beetles on the wing with their enormous gape, and occasionally take small birds or bats in flight, an unusual habit among North American birds.

Nesting

No nest is built; the female lays her eggs directly on leaf litter or bare ground in open woodland, relying on cryptic plumage for camouflage.