Saw my second or third Nighthawk within the city of Seattle in maybe 10 years this evening at Camp Long in West Seattle (my first ever for Camp Long). It was just at dusk and I had told a school group camping there that we should look for bats as it got dark. We shortly saw a bat and I took them to the field to look for bats and there were a number flying (possibly the "battiest" night I observed at Camp Long in many years), but one "bat" was a bigger than most. At first I thought maybe a Hoary Bat, then watching more it was clearly not a bat at all, but a Nighthawk. The bat/Nighthawk flight lasted less than 10 to 20 minutes and then they were all gone. Though I know that both species are most active at dawn and dusk, I expected the flight period to be a bit longer. I wonder if the bats and Nighthawks were migrating south together. I have never heard of this, but I only recently learned that bats migrate at all. Sadly the Nighthawk didn't vocalize.

-Stewart

Stewart Wechsler
-Ecological Consultant - Nature Guide
Naturalist - Botanist
206 932-7225
ecostewart at quidnunc.net
-Advice on the most site-appropriate native plants to maximize the site's potential for native biodiversity
-Educational programs, nature walks, and field trips for schools, public and private groups
-Botanical Surveys