The bright yellow eyes of a Least Bittern suddenly popped out of the dense marsh leaves as I walked by. Once I saw this furtive little beauty, I waited ever so patiently for him to make himself a little more visible so I could get a really good shot. 😉 Knowing how elusive Least Bitterns […]
Tag Archives: Least Bittern
Just came back from an evening walk at our favorite wetlands. A slight movement here in the dense marsh foliage made me take a closer look – and there he was! How lovely to encounter this Least Bittern climbing deftly from stem to stem right in front of us. ☺️
We’ve been seeing so MANY Least Bitterns this season! Interestingly, they’re not acting quite as ‘elusive’ and ‘secretive’ as usual (Audubon). The other morning, I paused for a moment along the boardwalk and looked down when I noticed some suspicious movement in the marsh leaves. 😉 Much to my delight, a pair of Least Bitterns […]
Much as they try to hide, we’re lucky that the elusive Least Bitterns enjoy our local wetlands! All About Birds includes a very apt description of this shy little bird: “The furtive Least Bittern is often little more than a voice in the reeds that is frustratingly difficult to locate. But these diminutive herons reward […]
These first three images are some of the still-fuzzy Least Bittern fledglings that were clambering about in the marsh last week – tiny little white feathers still popping through their dark chestnut plumage. The nest was hidden out of view of the boardwalk, so it’s unclear just how old they were here, but 4 or […]
Least Bittern females and juveniles are mostly pale and soft brown in color (like the Bittern featured here), while males have dark green crown and back feathers (All About Birds). This female Bittern was having quite a productive little fishing expedition one recent morning! Although we often see obvious size and/or color differences in male […]
“Shy, secretive denizen of the marsh,” the Least Bittern (Smithsonian Handbooks, Birds of Florida, p. 65) can be very elusive. I was so happy to see this one moving about out in the open, in full view, on two recent days in a row! The smallest (11-14″) heron in North America, the Least Bittern is […]
Least Bitterns are known for being shy and very well-camouflaged, great at hiding in the marsh. I spotted this Bittern fly in on a recent early July morning, and assumed it would quickly scoot off into the dense foliage. But when I hurried over to get a better look, she just stood there, posing atop […]
This little fella peeking out from the reeds above, the Least Bittern, is often described as ‘reclusive, ‘solitary’ and ‘elusive’. He is the smallest of our Herons (11-14″), and quite a common permanent resident of Florida. But, the Least Bittern is often hard to find – and difficult to see clearly once you do catch a […]
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