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Little Bittern
(Ixobrychus minutus)
: "Common Little Bittern"
German name(s): "Zwergdommel"
Size: 25-36 cm; wing span 40-58 cm
Weight: 60-150 g
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Similar species |
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Physical description |
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Click here for a physical description
Little Bitterns are very small herons with a
rufous front (face and breast).
Male
Little Bitterns have a black back (cap, nape of neck, wings);
females
have a brown back.
The inner wings of both sexes are rufous, the belly and vent are
white.
The irises of both sexes are yellow.
The bill is greyish-yellow, the legs and feet are greenish-yellow.
Juveniles
have highly cryptic plumage with prominent striation.
The brown is creamy to fawn, with heavy rufous streaking,
while the back, from the cap down, is dark-grey, with rufous
to brown edge lining, most prominently on the wing feathers.
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Taxonomy, classification |
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See Little
Bittern at Wikipedia .
Click here for classification information
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Range, habitat, finding this species |
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Click here for information on habitat
and range
The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and
specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found,
based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to
ebird.org
.
The global distribution of the Little Bittern is available
HERE
.
There are 3 accepted races of Little Bitterns, whose combined
range extends from parts of Africa and Madagascar to parts of
Europe and eastward via Asia Minor and Arabia into south-western
and central Asia, as far as Iran and Afghanistan in the South
and Kazakhstan and north-western China in the North.
Of the 3 races one, nominate race
"minutus",
is migratory (except for a permanent population in the Nile Delta).
They winter in sub-Saharan Africa and southern parts of their
Asian range, migrating into mid-latitude Europe and western to
central Asia for the breeding season.
The other two races are sedentary.
Race "payesii" is resident in sub-Saharan Africa, while race
"podiceps" is found only on Madagascar.
In Europe, Little Bitterns are found as breeding migrants
from the South. Their breeding range extends from Iberia
and parts of England, via parts of central Europe into most
of eastern Europe. They are also present in (near-)coastal
regions throughout the Mediterranean, around the Black Sea
and basically anywhere in eastern Europe, including European
Russia from a line connecting the Danube River with the
Caucasus, up to about 55 degrees latitude (the Baltic
states).
Little Bitterns are usually found in freshwater habitats,
mostly in reeds around freshwater lakes, but also reedbeds
and other dense vegetation along creeks and in swamps.
Sometimes they are also
found in wetlands with brackish and saline water.
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Sightings |
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Click here for sighting information
Race "minutus"
J. Pires reports spotting Little Bitterns,
nominate race
"minutus",
occasionally in wetlands in near-coastal southern Portugal.
More photos shown below were taken by M. Eaton in Egypt.
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Photos |
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Race "minutus"
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ADULT |
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MALE |
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Near-frontal view of a male Little Bittern with
nuptial
flush, as indicated by the bright-red bill
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sorraia River, Santa Justa, Coruche, Santarem, Portugal, June 2019]
Near-lateral view of a male Little Bittern with
nuptial flush
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sorraia River, Santa Justa, Coruche, Santarem, Portugal, June 2019]
Frontal view of a male Little Bittern - this bird is smaller
than a Common
Moorhen!
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, September 2019]
Frontal view of a male Little Bittern in reeds
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, September 2019]
Frontal view of a male Little Bittern
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Near Mora, Evora, Portugal, November 2013]
Near-frontal view of a male Little Bittern
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Near Mora, Evora, Portugal, November 2013]
Near-lateral view of a male Little Bittern in cryptic posture
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Near Mora, Evora, Portugal, November 2013]
Lateral view of a male Little Bittern flushing from cover
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, September 2019]
Lateral view of a male Little Bittern shortly after take-off
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, September 2019]
Near-dorsal view of a male Little Bittern; note
the somewhat awkward posture
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, September 2019]
Distant near-dorsal view of a male Little Bittern in flight,
showing the characteristic upperwing pattern
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Mora, Evora, Portugal, July 2018]
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FEMALE |
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Lateral view of a female Little Bittern
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[November 2017]
Dorsal view of a female Little Bittern ducking into cover
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Near Elvas, Alentejo, Portugal, September 2018]
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IMMATURE/JUVENILE |
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Lateral view of a juvenile Little Bittern
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[November 2017]
These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our
contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species
please refer to a field guide.