The White-tailed Nightjar is nocturnal and has strongly different plumages in males and females. Males have a broad white wing band and a tail that is white underneath. It hunts insects at night over dry grassland and savanna in lowlands.
Males are pale grey, mottled with brown and dark markings, with a cinnamon collar on the hindneck. The throat, eyebrow, belly, and underside of the tail are white. Females are darker and buffier below, without the male's white tail band.
It is strictly nocturnal and eats insects such as moths, flies, beetles, damselflies, crickets, and grasshoppers. It nests on the ground and lays two eggs.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.