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Bitterns By Alfredo Arreguín
Bitterns are birds belonging to the subfamily Botaurinae of the heron family Ardeidae. Bitterns tend to be shorter-necked and more secretive than other members of the family. They were called ''hæferblæte'' and various iterations of ''raredumla'' in Old English; the word "bittern" came to English from Old French ''butor'', itself from Gallo-Roman ''butitaurus'', a compound of Latin ''būtiō'' (buzzard) and ''taurus'' (bull). Bitterns usually frequent reed beds and similar marshy areas and feed on amphibians, reptiles, insects, and fish. Bitterns, like herons, egrets, and pelicans, fly with their necks retracted, unlike the cranes, storks, ibises and spoonbills, and geese A goose (: geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera '' Anser'' (grey geese and white geese) and ''Branta'' (black geese). Some members of the Tadorninae subfamily (e.g., Egyp ... which fly with necks extended and outstretched. The g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Bittern
The American bittern (''Botaurus lentiginosus'') is a species of wading bird in the heron family. It has a Nearctic distribution, breeding in Canada and the northern and central parts of the United States, and wintering in the U.S. Gulf Coast states, all of Florida into the Everglades, the Caribbean islands and parts of Central America. It is a well-camouflaged, solitary brown bird that unobtrusively inhabits marshes and the coarse vegetation at the edge of lakes and ponds. In the breeding season it is chiefly noticeable by the loud, booming call of the male. The nest is built just above the water, usually among bulrushes and cattails, where the female incubates the clutch of olive-colored eggs for about four weeks. The young leave the nest after two weeks and are fully fledged at six or seven weeks. The American bittern feeds mostly on fish but also eats other small vertebrates as well as crustaceans and insects. It is fairly common over its wide range, but its numbers are t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spoonbill
Spoonbills are a genus, ''Platalea'', of large, long-legged wading birds. The spoonbills have a global distribution, being found on every continent except Antarctica. The genus name ''Platalea'' derives from Ancient Greek and means "broad", referring to the distinctive shape of the bill. Six species are recognised, which although usually placed in a single genus have sometimes been split into three genera. All spoonbills have large, flat, spatulate bills and feed by wading through shallow water, sweeping the partly opened bill from side to side. The moment any small aquatic creature touches the inside of the bill—an insect, crustacean, or tiny fish—it is snapped shut. Spoonbills generally prefer fresh water to salt but are found in both environments. They need to feed many hours each day. Taxonomy The genus ''Platalea'' was introduced in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae, tenth edition of his ''Systema Naturae ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Schrenck's Bittern
Von Schrenck's bittern or Schrenck's bittern (''Botaurus eurhythmus'') is a small bittern named after Leopold von Schrenck, the 19th-century Russian zoologist. It breeds in southeast Siberia, east China, the Korean Peninsula and Japan. It winters from the Malay Peninsula to the Greater Sunda Islands, Sulawesi and the Philippines. This species was formerly placed in the genus ''Ixobrychus''. Taxonomy Von Schrenck's bittern was formally described in 1873 by the English naturalist Robert Swinhoe under the binomial name ''Ardetta eurhythma''. He designated the type locality as the Amor (Xiamen) and Shanghai regions of China. Swinhoe realised that the species had been illustrated in a book by the Russian zoologist Leopold von Schrenck published in 1858. Von Schrenck had encountered the bird in the Amur river basin of eastern Russia and had believed it was a cinnamon bittern. Von Schrenck's bittern was formerly placed in the genus ''Ixobrychus''. A molecular phylogenetic study of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yellow Bittern
The yellow bittern (''Botaurus sinensis'') is a small bittern. It is of Old World origins, breeding in the northern Indian Subcontinent, east to the Russian Far East, Japan, and Indonesia. It is mainly resident, but some northern birds migrate short distances. It has been recorded as a vagrant in Alaska and there has been a single sighting in Great Britain, from Radipole Lake, Dorset on November 23, 1962 – however, the British Ornithologists' Union has always considered this occurrence to be of uncertain provenance and currently it is not accepted onto the official British List. Taxonomy The yellow bittern was formally described in 1789 by Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with the herons, cranes, storks, and bitterns in the genus '' Ardea'' and coined the binomial name ''Ardea sinensis''. Gmelin based his description on the "Chinese heron" that had been included by the English ornithologist John Latham in his mult ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Least Bittern
The least bittern (''Botaurus exilis'') is a small heron, the smallest member of the family Ardeidae found in the Americas. This species was formerly placed in the genus ''Ixobrychus''. Taxonomy The least bittern was Species description, formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with the herons, cranes, storks, and bitterns in the genus ''Ardea (bird), Ardea'' and coined the binomial nomenclature, binomial name ''Ardea exilis''. Gmelin based his description on the "minute bittern" from Jamaica that had been included by the English ornithologist John Latham (ornithologist), John Latham in his multi-volume work ''A General Synopsis of Birds''. Latham did not specify how he had obtained the specimen. The least bittern was formerly placed in the genus ''Ixobrychus'' but when a molecular phylogenetic study of the heron family Ardeidae published in 2023 found that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stripe-backed Bittern
The stripe-backed bittern (''Botaurus involucris'') is a South American bird species belonging to the family Ardeidae, which includes Herons, Egrets and Bitterns. It was formerly placed in the genus ''Ixobrychus''. Commonly found near freshwater swamps, marshes, lake shores and streams, stripe-backed bitterns span over a wide distribution that divides into the northern and southern populations, spanning on both sides of the Andes. Although increasingly recognized and researched worldwide, much life history details are lacking concerning this species, which remains understudied compared to its similar looking sister clade, including the least bittern (''Botaurus exilis''). Taxonomy The stripe-backed bittern was formally described in 1823 by the French ornithologist Louis Vieillot under the binomial name ''Ardea involucris''. Vieillot based his account on the "Garza varia" that had been described in 1805 by Spanish naturalist Félix de Azara in his ''Apuntamientos para la histor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cinnamon Bittern
The cinnamon bittern (''Botaurus cinnamomeus'') or chestnut bittern is a small Old World bittern, breeding in tropical and subtropical Asia from India east to China and Indonesia. It is mainly resident, but some northern birds migrate short distances. This species was formerly placed in the genus ''Ixobrychus''. Taxonomy The cinnamon bittern was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with herons, cranes, egrets and bitterns in the genus '' Ardea'' and coined the binomial name ''Ardea cinnamomea''. Gmelin based his description on the "Chinese heron" that had been included by the English ornithologist John Latham in his multi-volume ''A General Synopsis of Birds''. Latham had based his own description on a partial specimen in the British Museum. The cinnamon bittern was formerly placed in the genus ''Ixobrychus''. A molecular phylogenetic study of the heron ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Zealand Little Bittern
The New Zealand bittern (''Botaurus novaezelandiae'') is an extinct and enigmatic species of heron in the family Ardeidae. It was endemic to New Zealand and was last recorded alive in the 1890s. Common names for this species include New Zealand little bittern, spotted heron, and ''kaoriki'' (Māori). The scientific species name also has numerous junior synonyms. This species was formerly placed in the genus ''Ixobrychus''. Taxonomy The species has sometimes been regarded as a subspecies of little bittern (''Botaurus minutus''), or conspecific with the black-backed bittern (''Botaurus dubius'') of Australia and New Guinea, though it was first described by Alexander Callender Purdie in 1871 as ''Ardeola novaezelandiae''. In 1980, New Zealand palaeontologist Peter L. Horn found subfossil bones of a bittern from Lake Poukawa, which he named ''Dupetor flavicollis''. In 1991, Philip Millener identified Horn's material as remains of the New Zealand bittern. Description Althoug ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Australian Little Bittern
The black-backed bittern (''Botaurus dubius''), also known as the black-backed least bittern or Australian little bittern, is a little-known species of heron in the family Ardeidae found in Australia and vagrant to southern New Guinea. Formerly lumped with the little bittern, it is one of the smallest herons in the world. This species was formerly placed in the genus ''Ixobrychus''. Taxonomy The bittern has sometimes been regarded as a subspecies of the little bittern (''Botaurus minutus''), or of the New Zealand bittern (''Botaurus novaezelandiae''). However, molecular evidence has shown it to be more closely related to the yellow bittern (''Botaurus sinensis'') than to the African and Palaearctic forms of the little bittern, and it is now recognised as a full species. Description The species measures from , has a total weight of , averaging . This is a very small bittern and one of the smallest herons in the world. The adult male has largely black upperparts, including a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Australasian Bittern
The Australasian bittern (''Botaurus poiciloptilus''), or Matuku-hūrepo in Māori language, Māori, is a stocky, sizeable and elusive heron-like bird native to the Wetland, wetlands of Australia, New Zealand, and New Caledonia.Heather, B. D., & Robertson, H. A. (1996). ''The Field Guide to the Birds of New Zealand''. Penguin Books (NZ) Ltd. It belongs to the bittern subfamily of the heron family Heron, Ardeidae. The Australasian bittern is best known for its cryptic plumage and behaviours, which allows it to blend into the rushes and reeds of its wetland habitats, making it particularly difficult to spot.O’Donnell, C. F. J., Williams, E. M., & Cheyne, J. (2013)Close approaches and acoustic triangulation: techniques for mapping the distribution of booming Australasian bittern (''Botaurus poiciloptilus'') on small wetlands.''Notornis'', ''60'', 279–284. Despite being rarely seen, Australasian bittern males have a distinct "booming" call that can carry long distances. Physicall ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South American Bittern
The pinnated bittern (''Botaurus pinnatus''), also known as the South American bittern, is a large member of the heron family (Ardeidae) found in the New World tropics. Like the other ''Botaurus'' bitterns, its plumage is mostly buffy-brown and cryptically patterned. Though it is a widespread species, it is rarely seen – presumably due to its skulking habits – and much about its life history remains little known. Description The pinnated bittern is a large heron, measuring between with a weight that ranges from ; males typically weigh considerably more than females. Sexes are similarly plumaged, but females tend to be smaller than males and have brown instead of black on the tail. Both adults and immature birds are generally buffy, though heavily marked with cryptic patterning. Juveniles tend to have a somewhat more reddish ground color. The throat is unmarked white, the foreneck is white broadly streaked with pale brown, and the rest of the neck is buff with thin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
