Great Bittern
Encyclopedia
The Eurasian Bittern or Great Bittern (Botaurus stellaris) is a wading bird
of the heron
family Ardeidae. It is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA
) applies.
for bittern, Botaurus, also refers to the bull. The other part of its scientific name, stellata is the Latin for starry, in reference to its plumage
. Its folk names include "barrel-maker", "bog-bull", "bog hen", "bog-trotter" and "mire drum", mainly with reference to its voice or habitat. "Butterbump" derives from Norfolk and refers to its high fat content when eaten as food.
, Botaurus lentiginosa. The Eurasian or Great Bittern is 69–81 cm (27.2–31.9 in) in length, with a 100–130 cm (39.4–51.2 in) wingspan and a body mass of 0.87–1.94 kg (1.9–4.3 lb). Their most distinctive feature is the males booming call in spring.
reedbeds. The population is declining in much of its temperate Europe
an and Asia
n range. It is resident in the milder west and south, but migrates
south from areas where the water freezes in winter. In the UK, the main areas are Lancashire
and East Anglia
with an estimated 44 breeding pairs. In Ireland it died out as a breeding species in the mid-19th century, but in 2011 a single bird was spotted in County Wexford.
and the upland foothills of the Drakensberg
. The southern race suffered catastrophic decline during the 20th century due to wetland degradation, and unlike the northern race it is of highest conservation concern.
in short story Brave Mita and drekavac from the pond by Branko Ćopić
.
The species is mentioned in George Crabbe
's 1810 narrative poem The Borough, to emphasise the ostracised, solitary life of the poem's villain, Peter Grimes
:
Thomas McDonagh the Irish poet executed for his part in the Easter Rising
translated a famous Gaelic poem "The Yellow Bittern". His friend and fellow poet Francis Ledwidge
wrote a celebrated "Lament for Thomas McDonagh" with the opening line He shall not hear the bittern cry.
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
of the heron
Heron
The herons are long-legged freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae. There are 64 recognised species in this family. Some are called "egrets" or "bitterns" instead of "heron"....
family Ardeidae. It is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA
AEWA
The Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds is the largest of its kind developed so far under the Bonn Convention. It was concluded on 16 June 1995 at The Hague, the Netherlands and entered into force on 1 November 1999 after the required number of at least fourteen...
) applies.
Etymology
The LatinLatin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
for bittern, Botaurus, also refers to the bull. The other part of its scientific name, stellata is the Latin for starry, in reference to its plumage
Feather
Feathers are one of the epidermal growths that form the distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on birds and some non-avian theropod dinosaurs. They are considered the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates, and indeed a premier example of a complex evolutionary novelty. They...
. Its folk names include "barrel-maker", "bog-bull", "bog hen", "bog-trotter" and "mire drum", mainly with reference to its voice or habitat. "Butterbump" derives from Norfolk and refers to its high fat content when eaten as food.
Description
Bitterns are thickset herons with bright, pale, buffy-brown plumage covered with dark streaks and bars, similar in appearance to the to the American BitternAmerican Bittern
The American Bittern is a wading bird of the heron family Ardeidae. New evidence has led the American Ornithologists' Union to move the heron family into the order Pelecaniformes .-Description:...
, Botaurus lentiginosa. The Eurasian or Great Bittern is 69–81 cm (27.2–31.9 in) in length, with a 100–130 cm (39.4–51.2 in) wingspan and a body mass of 0.87–1.94 kg (1.9–4.3 lb). Their most distinctive feature is the males booming call in spring.
Distribution and habitat
Distribution in Europe as a whole is estimated at 20-44,000 males. It usually inhabits PhragmitesPhragmites
Phragmites, the Common reed, is a large perennial grass found in wetlands throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world. Phragmites australis is sometimes regarded as the sole species of the genus Phragmites, though some botanists divide Phragmites australis into three or four species...
reedbeds. The population is declining in much of its temperate Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n range. It is resident in the milder west and south, but migrates
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
south from areas where the water freezes in winter. In the UK, the main areas are Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
and East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
with an estimated 44 breeding pairs. In Ireland it died out as a breeding species in the mid-19th century, but in 2011 a single bird was spotted in County Wexford.
Races
Besides the Eurasian race, Botaurus s. stellaris, another race, Botaurus s. capensis exists in southern Africa, which occurs sparingly in marshes of the east coast, the Okavango DeltaOkavango Delta
The Okavango Delta , in Botswana, is the world's largest inland delta. It is formed where the Okavango River empties onto a swamp in an endorheic basin in the Kalahari Desert, where most of the water is lost to evaporation and transpiration instead of draining into the sea...
and the upland foothills of the Drakensberg
Drakensberg
The Drakensberg is the highest mountain range in Southern Africa, rising to in height. In Zulu, it is referred to as uKhahlamba , and in Sesotho as Maluti...
. The southern race suffered catastrophic decline during the 20th century due to wetland degradation, and unlike the northern race it is of highest conservation concern.
Behaviour
Usually solitary, it walks stealthily as it forages. If it senses that it has been seen, it becomes motionless, with its bill pointed upward, causing it to blend into the reeds. It is most active at dawn and dusk.Breeding
Males are polygamous with each mating with up to five females. The nest is built in the previous year's standing reeds and consists of a platform some 30 cm across. Four or five eggs are laid in late March and April and incubated by the female bird. After hatching, the chicks spend about two weeks in the nest and then disperse amongst the reeds.Feeding
Bitterns feed on fish, eels, amphibians and invertebrates, hunting along the reed margins in shallow water.Voice
The mating call of the male is a deep fog-horn or bull-like boom, easily audible from a distance of two miles on a calm night. Surveys of Eurasian Bitterns are carried out by noting the number of distinct male booms in a given area.In fiction
Eurasian Bittern is proposed as a rational explanation behind the mythical creature drekavacDrekavac
Drekavac , also called drek and drekalo 'дрекавац' in Serbian is a mythical creature in south Slavic mythology.-Original beliefs:Drekavac come from the souls of children who have died unbaptised....
in short story Brave Mita and drekavac from the pond by Branko Ćopić
Branko Copic
Branko Ćopić was Yugoslav writer. He was an ethnic Serb born in the village of Hašani near Bosanska Krupa. He attended schools in Bihać, Banja Luka, Sarajevo and Karlovac before moving to Belgrade to study philosophy at the University of Belgrade until his graduation in 1940.Upon the uprising in...
.
The species is mentioned in George Crabbe
George Crabbe
George Crabbe was an English poet and naturalist.-Biography:He was born in Aldeburgh, Suffolk, the son of a tax collector, and developed his love of poetry as a child. In 1768, he was apprenticed to a local doctor, who taught him little, and in 1771 he changed masters and moved to Woodbridge...
's 1810 narrative poem The Borough, to emphasise the ostracised, solitary life of the poem's villain, Peter Grimes
Peter Grimes
Peter Grimes is an opera by Benjamin Britten, with a libretto adapted by Montagu Slater from the Peter Grimes section of George Crabbe's poem The Borough...
:
"And the loud Bittern from the bull-rush home
Gave from the Salt-ditch side the bellowing boom:"
Thomas McDonagh the Irish poet executed for his part in the Easter Rising
Easter Rising
The Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
translated a famous Gaelic poem "The Yellow Bittern". His friend and fellow poet Francis Ledwidge
Francis Ledwidge
Francis Edward Ledwidge was an Irish war poet from County Meath. Sometimes known as the "poet of the blackbirds", he was killed in action at the Battle of Passchendaele during World War I.-Early life:...
wrote a celebrated "Lament for Thomas McDonagh" with the opening line He shall not hear the bittern cry.