The nominate subspecies' upperparts are grayish brown with blackish streaks and the folded wing shows bold white spots.

All but the central tail feathers have narrow pale tips, white in the male and buff in the female.

[3] The nominate subspecies of least poorwill is found in the central and western parts of the Dominican Republic, especially Pedernales, Independencia, and Barahona Provinces, and adjoining Ouest Department in Haiti.

[1][3] The least poorwill inhabits arid to semi-arid landscapes such as limestone woodland and areas of cactus and thorn scrub.

[3] The IUCN originally assessed the least poorwill in 1988 as Near Threatened and changed the rating to Data Deficient in 2000.