The Standard-Winged Nightjar is one of the coolest and strangest looking birds I've seen. When I first watched this video, I thought the bird had TV antennas stuck to its wings. Once it took off in flight, I realized what I was looking at.
Male nightjars sport incredibly long primary feathers—reaching a whopping 15 inches—that extend well beyond their tails like two floating black wires with tufts at the ends.
What makes these long primary feathers so interesting is how the "fuzzy" part is at the very end, making them look like two long black wires sticking out from the bird. The male Standard-Winged Nightjars use these special feathers to put on elaborate aerial courtship displays and woo potential partners. These birds are nocturnal, so you're lucky if you happen to see one out and about during the day.
See also: Watching birds up close and personal
