Von Schrenck's Bittern

Botaurus eurhythmus

Family: Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns · Status: Rare migrant · Size: 39–42 cm · Conservation: Least Concern

Range

Breeds from southeastern Siberia, Korea, and Japan to eastern China; winters from the Thai-Malay Peninsula to the Greater Sundas, Sulawesi, and Philippines.

Identification

Male has dark chestnut upperparts and dark grey crown contrasting with buffish underparts; flight feathers are dark gray with a greyish-buff wing covert panel. Female and immature resemble male but have streaking extending from throat to breast and extensive white spotting on upperparts. In flight, dark grey flight feathers and primary tips are visible which are lacking in Cinnamon Bittern. Female and juvenile also have darker upperparts than Cinnamon Bittern. Like Black and Cinnamon Bittern, the eye has a dark mark behind the iris giving it a barrell-shaped appearance compared to the clean-looking circular iris in Yellow Bittern.

Habitat

Wooded edges of wetlands, freshwater marshes, forest streams, well-vegetated ponds, and mangroves.

Behaviour

Perches motionless for long periods; sometimes forages on the forest floor.