It lives in open western lowlands and foothills. By day it sits still in pairs or small groups; at night it becomes active and vocal.
It is about 40 cm long, with a large square-looking head, large pale eyes, gray-brown plumage marked with pale streaks and spots, light underparts, and long greenish legs.
In open western lowlands and foothills it often remains still in pairs or small groups during the day, then becomes active and vocal at night.
In Chile, daytime groups rest in fields with tall vegetation, often in dry cornfields.
In Chile, it nests in a small ground depression and lays 2 eggs.
It has a black line over the head, a yellow bill with a black tip, and yellow-green eyes.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.