Satanic Nightjar
Eurostopodus diabolicus
- Family
- Nightjars and Nighthawks (Caprimulgidae)
- Order
- Caprimulgiformes
Overview
The Satanic nightjar (Eurostopodus diabolicus), also Heinrich's nightjar, satanic eared-nightjar, Sulawesi eared-nightjar, Satanic goatsucker or diabolical nightjar is a mid-sized, spotted, dark brown nightjar endemic to the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. The species was discovered in 1931 by Gerd Heinrich, a German natural historian who collected a single female holotype from Mount Klabat on the Minahasa peninsula of Northern Sulawesi.
In the following decades, there were a few unconfirmed reports of sightings and calls of the bird, but it did not officially resurface until 1996 when David Bishop and Jared Diamond positively identified it in Lore Lindu National Park by its sound. This made the visible rediscovery available for multiple people in the tour group including poet and writer Jan Zwaaneveld.
Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Range and habitat
Montane forest of northern and central Sulawesi.
Range description: AviList Global Avian Checklist.
Sources and further reading
- Wikipedia: Satanic nightjar
- eBird: sightings, maps and photos
- xeno-canto: sound recordings
- Birds of the World: full species account (subscription)
- BirdLife DataZone: status and threats
- IUCN Red List (threat status)
- AviList global checklist (taxonomy)
Last updated September 29, 2026.