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American Bittern

American Bittern. Botaurus lentiginosus Live up to 3 years in the wild. Range. The American Bittern is a migratory bird that covers vast distances It breeds in northern North America and migrates south to wait out the cold winter months. . Habitat.

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American Bittern

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  1. American Bittern Botauruslentiginosus Live up to 3 years in the wild.

  2. Range • The American Bittern is a migratory bird that covers vast distances • It breeds in northern North America and migrates south to wait out the cold winter months.

  3. Habitat Interior freshwater marshes with tall vegetation are the preferred habitat of the American Bittern but they also live in sedgy bogs

  4. Identification • 23 inches from bill to tail • Wingspan of 45 inches • Dark brown with a belly of streaked brown and white • Black streaks from bill to shoulder

  5. Feeding • The American Bittern is a stand-and-wait predator • Eats small fish, crayfish, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and insects

  6. Mating • The male arches his back, shortens his neck, dips forward and calls to the female in a booming voice • Both bird perform complex aerial displays

  7. Nesting • Usually solitary nesting but occasionally in loose colonies • Nest on dry ground in dense vegetation using dead plants • Female gathers material and builds nest

  8. The color of the eggs help hide them from predators • American Bitterns are shy and will fly away if their camouflage defense fails

  9. Nesting Continued • Generally lay 4-5 eggs at irregular intervals • Plain buff brown to olive color • Incubation by the mother of 24-28 days (beginning with first egg)

  10. The Young • The young remain in the nest for two weeks • When first hatched, they are covered with down but plumage begins to appear over a the first week • By the following summer the bird is fully matured

  11. Video Clip • Short video taken of an American Bittern in a Maine backyard • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYem7k9pVDI

  12. Defense Mechanisms • When under threat the American Bittern will point it’s bill toward the sky and use the brown streaks on its belly to camouflage with the surrounding reeds and leaves

  13. Call • http://www.abirdshome.com/Audubon/calls/ambittern.mp3 • The voice is deep slow and resonant • Most often heard at dawn, dusk or night

  14. To learn more about CREA please visit www.creamaine.org

  15. Work Cited • http://baytrail.abag.ca.gov/vtour/map4/access/Alameda1/B10_FreshwaterMarsh.JPG • http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://identify.whatbird.com/img/4/2573/image.aspx&imgrefurl=http://identify.whatbird.com/obj/33/_/American_Bittern.aspx&usg=__6e5yeLdSHJ8pL41dGlgJRQJxijY=&h=460&w=310&sz=31&hl=en&start=2&itbs=1&tbnid=bTJmlUFvtfX-PM:&tbnh=128&tbnw=86&prev=/images%3Fq%3Drange%2Bof%2Bthe%2Bamerican%2Bbittern%26hl%3Den%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:1 • http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i1900id.html • http://mindjourney1962.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/pond_crayfish.jpg

  16. http://identify.whatbird.com/obj/33/_/American_Bittern.aspx http://www.on.ec.gc.ca/wildlife/wildspace/life.cfm?ID=AMBI&Page=Nest&Lang=e http://monterey-bay.net/birds/struve_elkhorn/images/American_Bittern_2.jpg http://www.birdguides.com/birdnews/docs/OR209916.jpg Petersen, Wayne R., and Roger Burrows. Birds of New England. [Edmonton]: Lone Pine Pub., 2004. Print. Harrison, Hal H. Field Guide to the Birds' Nests: United States East of the Mississippi River.[S.l.]: Houghton Mifflin Co, 1998. Print.

  17. http://www.williamburt.com/gallery/40lg.jpg • http://www.birdsbybent.com/ch51-60/abittern.html

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