CreatureData

Red-necked nightjar

Caprimulgus ruficollis Temminck, 1820

NTNear Threatenedbirds

The red-necked nightjar (Caprimulgus ruficollis) is a species in the family Caprimulgidae, order Caprimulgiformes. Recorded adults weigh 68.5 g to 86 g and live up to 13.2 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Near Threatened.

Red-necked nightjar (Caprimulgus ruficollis)
Photo: Samuel Lopez Ligero · CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the red-necked nightjar

Weight
68.5 g – 86 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
13.2 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Invertivoresrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
13.3 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
forestsrc for Habitat
Young per litter or clutch
2src for Young per litter or clutch
Litters or clutches a year
2src for Litters or clutches a year
Lifestyle
Aerialsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Migratorysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Near Threatened (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the red-necked nightjar live?

Not recorded

What is the red-necked nightjar?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The red-necked nightjar (Caprimulgus ruficollis) is the largest of the nightjars occurring in Europe. It breeds in Iberia and North Africa, and winters in tropical West Africa.

From the Wikipedia article “Red-necked nightjar” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Red-necked_nightjar&oldid=1357353185), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the red-necked nightjar endangered?

The red-necked nightjar is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List: it is close to qualifying as threatened.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Near Threatened species. What the categories mean.

How is the red-necked nightjar classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderCaprimulgiformes
  5. familyCaprimulgidae
  6. genusCaprimulgus
  7. SpeciesCaprimulgus ruficollis Temminck, 1820

Synonyms Caprimulgus rufitorquatus, Nycticircus trimaculatus

Other names and names in other languages (51)
  • RNNIEnglish
  • RooineknaguilAfrikaans
  • Gallineta ciega pardaAragonese
  • rallu parduAsturian
  • Чырванашыйны лялякBelarusian
  • Ръждив козодойBulgarian
  • Червеноврат козодойBulgarian
  • Червеногуш козодойBulgarian
  • Adren gouzoug ruzBreton
  • sibocCatalan
  • lelek rudokrkýCzech
  • lelek rezavokrkýCzech
  • troellwr gyddfgochWelsh
  • Rødhalset NatravnDanish
  • RothalsziegenmelkerGerman
  • Rothals-NachtschwalbeGerman
  • Rothals-ZiegenmelkerGerman
  • ruĝkola kaprimulgoEsperanto
  • chotacabras pardoSpanish
  • Chotacabras cuellirojoSpanish
  • Chotacabras cuellirrojoSpanish
  • punakael-öösorrEstonian
  • Zata lepagorriBasque
  • Zata lepagorriaBasque
  • ruosteniskakehrääjäFinnish
  • Engoulevent à collier rouxFrench
  • Tuirne ruamhuinceachIrish
  • Avenoiteira papudaGalician
  • Screeaghag-oie yiargManx
  • תחמס חום-צווארוןHebrew
  • rusogrli leganjCroatian
  • rozsdásnyakú lappantyúHungarian
  • NiflfariIcelandic
  • Succiacapre collorossoItalian
  • アカエリヨタカJapanese
  • rudakaklis lėlysLithuanian
  • rudkakla vakarlēpisLatvian
  • Moorse NachtzwaluwDutch
  • rødhalsnattravnNorwegian
  • lelek rdzawoszyiPolish
  • noitibó-de-nuca-vermelhaPortuguese
  • Красношейный козодойRussian
  • RuostaniehkkečahranNorthern Sami
  • lelek červenokrkýSlovak
  • rdečevrata podhujkaSlovenian
  • Crvenovrati leganjSerbian
  • rödhalsad nattskärraSwedish
  • Kızıl Boyunlu ÇobanaldatanTurkish
  • дрімлюга іспанськийUkrainian
  • 紅頸夜鷹Chinese
  • 红颈夜鹰Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the red-necked nightjar

Other species in the same genus Caprimulgus.

CompareRed-necked nightjar vs European nightjarRed-necked nightjar vs Egyptian nightjarRed-necked nightjar vs Large-tailed nightjarRed-necked nightjar vs Indian nightjar

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the red-necked nightjar?

An adult red-necked nightjar weighs 68.5 g – 86 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the red-necked nightjar endangered?

The red-necked nightjar is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is close to qualifying as threatened.

How long does the red-necked nightjar live?

The red-necked nightjar has a recorded lifespan of 13.2 years.

What kind of animal is the red-necked nightjar?

The red-necked nightjar (Caprimulgus ruficollis) belongs to the family Caprimulgidae in the order Caprimulgiformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Red-necked nightjar (Caprimulgus ruficollis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/red-necked-nightjar

MLA

“Red-necked nightjar (Caprimulgus ruficollis).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/red-necked-nightjar.

BibTeX
@misc{red_necked_nightjar_2026,
  title = {Red-necked nightjar (Caprimulgus ruficollis)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/red-necked-nightjar},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}