By Steve Docker 22nd July 2024

Steve Docker is a Resource Development Officer with Field Studies Council Publications. He studied Nightjar bioacoustics for his MSc and here he searches for Derbyshire Nightjars.

A return visit

It is a beautiful evening in June. Sunset is about forty-five minutes away; the sky is clear and there is a light breeze. My wife and I have returned to a heathland plantation site that we checked out during a daytime visit earlier in the year. We are in search of our first Derbyshire Nightjar.

A solitary Brown Hare at the far side of a field greets us. Super long ears give it away even though the sun is quite low, and it is difficult to pick out the black tips. The insects are out, good for the insectivorous Nightjar, not so good for us! We found the midges less irritating if we kept moving, so we decide to walk around the site. There is time before sunset and hopefully, if we are lucky, the appearance of the crepuscular Nightjar.

The soundscape

It is Saturday evening, and we have the place to ourselves. Swifts are overhead and the soundscape includes Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Wren, and Blackbird. However, Song Thrush dominates with its improvised, short phrases. Loud clusters of notes repeated up to half a dozen times followed by a different phrase, repeated in turn.

As we pause to take in these sounds there is something different, a faint series of ‘wart, wart’ grunts followed by a short, high-pitched ‘pissp’ note. Turning towards this new sound a ‘roding’ Woodcock comes into view, flying a circuit. The Woodcock is unusual in that it is a wader that is found in woodland. We pan with our binoculars and its rapid wing beats, stout body and long straight bill, held at a steep angle, can be seen just above the treetops.

Woodcock Scolopax rusticola in flight
Woodcock Scolopax rusticola

Unexpected treats

At the edge of the site we enter a narrow strip of broadleaf trees. The sun is bright and producing shafts of sunlight. It looks amazing, almost like a painting.

Nightjar habitat: evening view of Wayne Piece woodland in Derbyshire
Broadleaf trees at sunset

We glance at the badger sett that we discovered on our previous visit but there is no badger activity, so we head back towards the heathland plantation. On our way back an unexpected treat awaits us in the low vegetation. There, amongst the spines on a plant stem is a Red and Black Froghopper. A slightly wider search reveals ‘cuckoo spit’ not far away. Immature froghoppers produce these frothy masses in the undergrowth.

Red and black froghopper Cercopis vulnerata photoraphed at dusk
Red and Black Froghopper Cercopis vulnerata

A beautiful orange sunset is beginning to show.

Derbyshire Heathland Plantation at sunset.

The Song Thrush is still singing very loudly but, in the distance, I can just make out the distinctive ‘churring’ song of a male Nightjar. Looking a little silly (it’s a good job no one else is about), I cup my ears forward to try to ascertain the direction the sound is coming from. We then follow the faint repetitive trill until it got louder and nearer. Every so often the ‘churring’ stopped abruptly and we are forced to wait until it starts up again. As we get closer, we can clearly make out the well-defined structure of the song. Long duration, high frequency phrases alternating with short, lower frequency phrases.

Finally, a nightjar!

Suddenly, the dark outline of a nightjar flies across the path in front of us, its wings held in a shallow ‘V’ shape above its back. Aeronautical engineers call this dihedral. It lands on top of a vertical dead tree allowing us an unobstructed view of its distinctive profile. Then, the bird takes off and flies towards us, straight across our path, giving us an amazing close-up view. This mysterious summer migrant entrances us. Almost a year in the planning, our very first encounter with a Derbyshire Nightjar.

European nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus
European Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus

Want to learn more?

I studied European Nightjar song types for my MSc dissertation and, with others, wrote a Nightjar bioacoustics paper for Bird Study (see Soundscape Resources section of website). During this study I discovered a rich legacy of field observation to draw upon. Most notably, during the 1898 breeding season, Edmund Selous kept a diary, delightfully entitled ‘An observational diary of the habits of Nightjars Caprimulgus europaeus mostly of a sitting pair. Notes taken at time and on the spot.’ In addition, the naturalist Gilbert White also mentions Nightjars in ‘The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne’ of 1769.

The xeno-canto website is an excellent resource. This is a citizen science project dedicated to sharing wildlife sounds, including bird calls and songs.

Field Studies Council have a range of courses. See also MSc Biological Recording and Analysis.

To help us all appreciate and enjoy biodiversity and better understand the changing state of nature the Field Studies Council has produced a wide range of high-quality identification resources such as the WildID fold-out guides and Aids to Identification in Difficult Groups of Animals & Plants (AIDGAP). The guides are available from the Field Studies Council online shop.