Great Bittern
Lowest risk
Migratory
The Eurasian bittern or great bittern is a wading bird in the bittern subfamily (Botaurinae) of the heron family Ardeidae. There are two subspecies, the northern race breeding in parts of Europe and across the Palearctic, as well as on the northern coast of Africa, while the southern race is endemic to parts of southern Africa. It is a secretive bird, seldom seen in the open as it prefers to skulk in reed beds and thick vegetation near water bodies. Its presence is apparent in the spring, when the booming call of the male during the breeding season can be heard. It feeds on fish, small mammals, fledgling birds, amphibians, crustaceans and insects.
- Range mass
- 874 to 243 g
- Range length
- 64 to 80 cm
- Range wingspan
- 125 to 135 cm
- Breeding interval
- Great bitterns typically rear a brood once yearly sometime in late March to early June, though individuals have been observed rearing a second brood following the failure of a first brood
- Breeding season
- Bitterns lay their eggs between March 25-June 20, with possible second brood dependent on first brood timing and habitat favorability, a second brood often follows a nest failure (Puglisi & Bretagnolle 2005, White et al. 2006)
- Range eggs per season
- 3 to 6
- Average eggs per season
- 4.2
- Average time to hatching
- 25 +/- 1.24 days
- Average fledging age
- 15 days
- Range time to independence
- 50 to 55 days
- Range territory size
- 200000 (low) m^2
Graves, E. 2017. "Botaurus stellaris" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed November 10, 2020 at https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Botaurus_stellaris/
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