Caprimulgus asiaticus
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
The Indian nightjar (Caprimulgus asiaticus) is a small nightjar which is a resident breeder in open lands across South Asia and Southeast Asia. Like most nightjars it is crepuscular and is best detected from its characteristic calls at dawn and dusk that have been likened to a stone skipping on a frozen lake - a series of clicks that become shorter and more rapid. They are sometimes spotted on roads when their eyes gleam red in the spotlight of a vehicle. There is considerable plumage variation across its range and can be hard to differentiate from other nightjars in the region especially in the field.
This nightjar is small and short-tailed with white corners to the tail, a golden nape and collar, dark cheeks and white patches on the sides of the throat. The crown is grey and the breast is finely barred in brown. The males have more white on the tail while the female is more heavily streaked on the crown. It is differentiated from Sykes's nightjar by the dark undertail and from Jerdon's nightjar by the shorter tail and white patches on the sides of the throat.
The call is distinctive and has been likened to a stone skipped on a frozen lake (due to which it was also... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yala National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 2 | Gir National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Udawalawe National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 4 | Bandhavgarh National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Satpura National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Wilpattu National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 7 | Keoladeo National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 8 | Minneriya National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 9 | Kanha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 11 | Ranthambore National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 12 | Mudumalai National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 13 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 14 | Bandipur National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 15 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an Indian Nightjar sighting in Udawalawe National Park on a given day, based on 50 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 110th most-seen of the 166 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June and July
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report an Indian Nightjar in Udawalawe National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April–May and August–October, the lowest months. Those are among Udawalawe National Park's driest months, with about 50 mm of rain a month against 330 mm in November.
Between 4 and 7 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Indian Nightjar sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
3rd of 15
Of the 15 parks where we can rate Indian Nightjar sightings, Udawalawe National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Yala National Park (Sri Lanka, about 20%) and Gir National Park (India, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Indian Nightjar is recorded against all the birds logged in Udawalawe National Park (50 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
