Eye to eye with a member from one of my favourite family of birds.

Spending almost the entire day invisible in their selected roost sites, nightjars come out and spend a lot of their time during the darker hours on the open road. This is a common sight on any night drive in almost every wilderness area. Approaching with extreme caution and patience, you are able to get almost centimetres from the bird at rest. This behaviour of resting along the roads is a question asked by many. Open spaces clearly allow for easier location and predation of their insectivorous diet. The theory of the road being a warmer surface is probably not the main cause of this peculiar behaviour.

One of the clear physical characteristics that make night life easy for this bird is its extra long ‘whisker like bristles which help in sensitively aiding them in catching their prey at super close quarters. The enlarged eye and massive pupil allow for better night vision.