Another of our elusive species has been spotted again this week, the bittern! A member of the heron family who are well known for being very secretive, being pale brown with darker streaks gives it the perfect camouflage amongst the reeds. They keep themselves hidden in the reed, rarely flying unless they’re feeding their young. When startled it will often freeze and stick its neck up in the air, which increases the effectiveness of its camouflage. This is known as bitterning. To spot one requires a good eye and a lot of patience.
Bitterns feed on many different things such as, fish, small mammals and insects. Males can mate with up to five females and nests are platforms made of grasses and reeds. The female does all the raising of the young. Whilst considered of least concern globally, in the UK it is one of the most threatened bird species with an estimate of only 80 breeding males.
can you spot the bittern?
The other thing bitterns are well known for is the males deep booming mating call that can be heard from miles away. The call is quite something to hear and has formed many stories as to the source of the noise over the years. One such story is that of the Drekavac, a creature from Slavic mythology who comes for the souls of children. Quite believable, as you wouldn’t expect a small bird to make such a noise! The boom of the bittern is also mentioned in sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s ‘the hound of the Baskerville’s’ after hearing the terrible howl , it is suggested that the bittern could have caused such a noise, and not a mysterious hound. A bittern booming was heard for the first time this year locally, which gives us great hope for the future.
Other top sightings from this week
Redwing, green woodpecker, Cetti’s warbler, water rail, snipe, dunnock, kestrel, curlew, goldcrest, bearded tit, peregrine, starlings (still looking good!), bittern, long tailed tit, chiff chaff, song thrush, mistle thrush, marsh harrier, greater spotted woodpecker, teal, stonechat.