Bittern

The bittern is a large marsh bird of the heron family. It is smaller than a heron and has brown streaked plumage. Sometimes here at the Church, we observe a visitor from distant waters at the edge of the church cement pond. When the bittern is hunting for insects, or hiding from predatory eyes, they lift their beak so that it points at the sky and the neck is revealed. The brown streaks on the neck blend cannily with the reeds, creating a camouflage of their native reedy environment.