User:StaraptorEmpoleon/Draft:Potoo

The potoos  are a family, Nyctibiidae of Strisorean birds related to the nightjars, Oilbird, frogmouths and the swifts, hummingbirds and owlet-nightjars. The seven extant species of potoos all belong to the genus Nyctibius .

These are nocturnal insectivores which lack the bristles around the mouth found in the true nightjars. They hunt from a perch like a shrike or flycatcher. During the day they perch upright on tree stumps, camouflaged to look like part of the stump. The single spotted egg is laid directly on the top of a stump.

Etymology
Nyctibius is from Greek νυκτιβιος nuktibios night-feeding  < νυξ nux, νυκτος nuktos  night; βιοω bioō  to live.

"Potoo" is originally from Jamaican English patoo; compare Twi patú owl.

Victorian naturalists called them "tree-nighthawks", but the Creole "potoo" was originally used for only one of [seven] species, is now used for all of them. They are sometimes called Poor-me-ones, after their haunting calls.

Description
Potoos are medium-sized to large, 41 - 50 cm, stoutly built, with weak sexual dimorphism. They resemble nightjars not simply because they are nocturnal, but also in certain physical characteristics: a small bill with a massive gape, large eyes, and intricately patterned plumage.

The wings are long and fairly pointed, the tail moderately long and the legs very short. The toes are strong and flattened beneath and the soles of the feet are thickly padded and the toes have curved claws.

All species are cryptically-coloured in greys or browns that resembles tree bark, while the Rufous Potoo is a cryptic shade of rufous. Downy chicks are white, but in Rufous, Andean and White-winged, is not described.

Common Potoo is identical to the Northern Potoo. They are best separated by voice and range. In Costa Rica, where both occur, there appear to be no constant morphological characters to distinguish the two vocal types.

Behaviour
Potoos have the ability to "freeze" motionless in an upright posture, with sleeked plumage, if they are disturbed. This behaviour, along with their superb cryptic colouration, enables them to blend into a tree trunk, appear like just another snag on a branch they are using as perch.