Common Nighthawk – Photo Study

The Common Nighthawk has always been one of my favorite birds, so on June 10th when Anna and I saw our first nighthawks of the year migrating over Mountain Home Reservoir here in Idaho, I was pretty excited. Since the 10th, Anna and I have seen or heard at least one nighthawk every day. Some days we have seen large groups of migrating nighthawks passing over areas and this has afforded me many opportunities to photograph this mysterious and beautiful species with my new camera. Not many people realize that you can actually determine sex of a nighthawk in the field very easily, especially when they are in flight. The male as a striking white throat and a white band across its tail, whereas the female as a dull tan throat and lacks a tail band. Below are some photos that show the field marks of male and female nighthawks.

Common Nighthawk - female

Common Nighthawk - male

Common Nighthawk - female

Common Nighthawk - male