Bittern

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 in Old English; the word "bittern" came to English from Old French butor, itself from Gallo-Roman butitaurus, a compound of Latin būtiō and taurus.[1]

For other uses, see Bittern (disambiguation).

Bitterns
American bittern
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Pelecaniformes
Family:	Ardeidae
Subfamily:	Botaurinae
Genera
Ixobrychus Billberg, 1828 Botaurus Stephens, 1819 Zebrilus Bonaparte, 1855

Bitterns usually frequent reed beds and similar marshy areas and feed on amphibians, reptiles, insects, and fish.

Unlike the similar storks, ibises, and spoonbills, herons, egrets, pelicans, and bitterns fly with their necks retracted, not outstretched.

The genus Ixobrychus contains mainly small species:

• Little bittern, Ixobrychus minutus
• Australian little bittern, Ixobrychus dubius
• New Zealand little bittern, Ixobrychus novaezelandiae (extinct)
• Cinnamon bittern, Ixobrychus cinnamomeus
• Stripe-backed bittern, Ixobrychus involucris
• Least bittern, Ixobrychus exilis
• Yellow bittern, Ixobrychus sinensis
• Schrenck's bittern, Ixobrychus eurhythmus
• Dwarf bittern, Ixobrychus sturmii
• Black bittern, Ixobrychus flavicollis

The genus Botaurus is the larger bitterns:

• American bittern, Botaurus lentiginosa.
• Eurasian bittern or great bittern, Botaurus stellaris
• South American bittern, Botaurus pinnatus
• Australasian bittern, Botaurus poiciloptilus
• Botaurus hibbardi (fossil)

The genus Zebrilus includes only one species:

• Zigzag heron (or properly zigzag bittern), Zebrilus undulatus

Notes

1. Joseph P. Pickett; et al., eds. (2000). "Bittern". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (4th ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Archived from the original on 2005-01-16. Retrieved 2006-07-04.