Chordeiles is a New World genus of nighthawks in the nightjar family Caprimulgidae.
Taxonomy The genus Chordeiles was introduced in 1832 by the English zoologist William Swainson with Caprimulgus virginianus Gmelin, JF, 1789, as the type species. The title page bears the year 1831 but the volume was not published until 1832. See: This is a junior synonym of Camprimulgus minor Forster, JR, 1771, the common nighthawk. The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek χορδή/khordē meaning "chord" and δείλη/deilē meaning "evening".
The genus contains the following six species:
Image Scientific name Common name Distribution Chordeiles pusillusLeast nighthawk northern South America Chordeiles rupestrisSand-coloured nighthawk Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela Chordeiles minorCommon nighthawk South America to northern North America. Chordeiles acutipennisLesser nighthawk United States through South America Chordeiles gundlachiiAntillean nighthawk the Greater Antilles, the Bahamas and the Florida Keys in the United States. Chordeiles nacundaNacunda nighthawk Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, and Venezuela
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