Caprimulgus inornatus, Heuglin, 1869

Dove, Carla J., Saucier, Jacob, Whatton, James F., Schmidt, Brian & Roble, Houssein R., 2017, First record of River Warbler Locustella fluviatilis and additional records for Plain Nightjar Caprimulgus inornatus and Lesser Masked Weaver Ploceus intermedius in Djibouti, Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 137 (1), pp. 67-70 : 68

PLAIN NIGHTJAR Caprimulgus inornatus

Currently listed as vagrant with just two observations from Djibouti (Redman et al. 2011) but we recorded the species as fairly common in 2014. It is considered a fairly common resident in north-west Somalia, with one record much further east (Ash & Miskell 1998) and is a rather uncommon breeding resident in parts of Ethiopia (Ash & Atkins 2009). We observed this species sporadically on the coastal side of Camp Lemonnier on several different occasions, and once during a visit to Decan Wildlife Refuge. The species was common in the Ambouli River drainage and at Chabelley, an old French airfield c. 24 km south-east of Camp Lemonnier (Arta Region). A specimen (USNM 647811) was collected from a group of Plain Nightjars that were crowding around a spotlight at night, on 7 May 2014, near Chabelley (11 o 31’10”N, 43 o 10’00”E; 85 m elevation). The specimen was prepared as a study skin with a partial skeleton saved. Body mass was 52.9 g with light fat and no moult. The skull was completely pneumatized, no bursa was present and the testes measured 9 × 8 mm (left) and 10 × 8 mm (right). Stomach contents comprised large insects including five grasshoppers (Orthoptera) and a wasp (Hymenoptera). Another sighting of the species, on 2 October 2015, from Camp Lemonnier is available on eBird (P. Kaestner; http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S25404346). We did not observe the species during the 2016 survey. The specimen record and our observations indicate that the species may be more seasonally common than thought, with more detailed observations being warranted to further document the status of Plain Nightjar in Djibouti.