Carolinanachtschwalbe vs Schwarzkehl-Nachtschwalbe

Antrostomus carolinensis compared with Antrostomus vociferus

Key Differences

• Carolinanachtschwalbe is Least Concern while Schwarzkehl-Nachtschwalbe is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Carolinanachtschwalbe	Schwarzkehl-Nachtschwalbe
Kingdom same	Animalia (Tier)	Animalia (Tier)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordatiere)	Chordata (Chordatiere)
Class same	Aves (Vögel)	Aves (Vögel)
Order same	Caprimulgiformes (Schwalmartige)	Caprimulgiformes (Schwalmartige)
Family same	Caprimulgidae	Caprimulgidae
Genus same	Antrostomus	Antrostomus
Species	Antrostomus carolinensis	Antrostomus vociferus

Evolutionary Relationship

Carolinanachtschwalbe and Schwarzkehl-Nachtschwalbe share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Antrostomus.

Conservation Status

Carolinanachtschwalbe

LC — Least Concern

Schwarzkehl-Nachtschwalbe

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Carolinanachtschwalbe	Schwarzkehl-Nachtschwalbe
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Carolinanachtschwalbe

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Norway, and Venezuela.

Schwarzkehl-Nachtschwalbe

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Norway and United States. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Carolinanachtschwalbe

The Chuck-will's-widow (Antrostomus carolinensis) is the largest nightjar in North America, named for its distinctive far-carrying call — a resonant four-syllable whistle repeated persistently on warm nights. It breeds across the southeastern United States, from the Atlantic coastal plain through the Gulf states and up the Mississippi Valley to southern Indiana and Kansas. The species migrates southward in autumn to winter quarters in the Caribbean, Central America, and northern South America. Like all nightjars, it is a crepuscular and nocturnal insectivore, capturing large moths, beetles, and other flying insects in flight using its enormous, bristle-fringed gape. By day, the Chuck-will's-widow roosts on the ground or along horizontal branches, relying on cryptic mottled plumage for concealment. It nests directly on the leaf litter of open woodland and scrub, typically in pine-oak forests, dry forests, and woodland edges. The IUCN classifies this species as Least Concern, though Breeding Bird Survey data suggest moderate long-term population declines linked to forest fragmentation and light pollution that disrupts insect prey availability. Conservation of large-scale woodland tracts in the southeastern United States benefits this species and its associated nightjar community.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 1 countries:

🇳🇴 Norway