This nightjar is marked by a reddish collar and a whistled call at night. It ranges widely across sub-Saharan Africa and catches insects from dusk into the night.
Its body is greyish brown, with a broad rufous to tawny collar at the back of the neck. Males have conspicuous white wing and tail patches; those of females are smaller and may be buff-colored.
It catches insects at dusk, before dawn, and on moonlit nights. It launches from a branch or post to catch beetles and moths, then returns to its perch.
In southern Africa it usually lays two eggs in a shallow ground depression among leaf litter. Incubation lasts about 18–19 days, with the female incubating by day and the male at night.
At four Zimbabwe nests, the parents alternated brooding and feeding. A chick grasped the adult’s bill tip before the adult regurgitated food into its mouth. Chicks moved toward a calling parent.
Hatchlings observed in Zimbabwe had closed eyes and, once dry, pale buff and russet down with dark brown stripes from the eye region along the back. Their legs were well developed and they could walk and make short runs.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.