Slender-tailed Nightjar
Caprimulgus clarus
Without the help of guide Julius Ruto (juliusrutto @ yahoo.com) this Nightjar would not have been seen at Lake Baringo National Park, Kenya. October 2010.
These insect-eating birds have extraordinary low-light vision allowing them to capture flying insects at dusk, dawn and and on moonlit nights. When hunting they perch on the ground in a clearing and sally after flying moths and other mostly soft-bodied insects. As they approach the bug their mouth opens very wide and the bug is thus caught mid-air. By day the birds sleep on the ground, typically in the shade of a bush. Incredible camouflage keeps them hidden but they are alert to approaching dangers none-the-less.
Caprimulgidae -- Nightjar Family
Books:
- Birds of Kenya and Northern Tanzania by Zimmerman et al.
- Birds of East Africa by Stevenson and Fanshawe