Enigmatic Owlet-Nightjar

Open encyclopedia reference

The New Caledonian owlet-nightjar (Aegotheles savesi), also known as the enigmatic owlet-nightjar, is a large owlet-nightjar with vermiculated grey-brown and black plumage. It has a long, slightly rounded tail, short, rounded wings, and long, stout legs. Its voice is unknown, but other owlet-nightjar species make churring and whistling sounds. It is the second-largest known owlet-nightjar (only the extinct New Zealand owlet-nightjar was larger), much larger than the Australian owlet-nightjar. The New Caledonian owlet-nightjar is endemic to New Caledonia's Melaleuca savanna and humid forests. Other owlet-nightjars are solitary, nest in holes in trees, and forage from a perch, both flying out to catch flying insects (hawking) and descending onto prey on the ground or on trunks and branches. It is unknown if these habits apply to the New Caledonian owlet-nightjar, but this species is larger and has longer legs than the other species, so it may be more terrestrial.

Wikipedia contributors, New Caledonian owlet-nightjar; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:00:23.699979+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Aegotheles savesi E. L. Layard & E. L. C. Layard, 1881

Name authority

E. L. Layard & E. L. C. Layard, 1881

Common name

Enigmatic Owlet-Nightjar

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Aves

Order

Apodiformes

Family

Aegothelidae

Genus

Aegotheles

Extinction status

Recorded extant

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classAves
9. orderApodiformes
10. familyAegothelidae
11. genusAegotheles Vigors & Horsfield, 1827
12. speciesAegotheles savesi E. L. Layard & E. L. C. Layard, 1881

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Aegotheles. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 8 records assigned to Aegothelidae.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=555505 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:658VG. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.