Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus Scientific name definitions

27–38 cm (1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ); 59–150 g (2 Delelis, N. (2006). Sur les données de baguage du Blongios nain Ixobrychus minutus. Alauda. 74(1): 187–188. Close ); wingspan 40–58 cm. Recalls other small bitterns in Africa and Asia, although very similar vagrant I. exilis must be kept in mind in W Palearctic; in Africa, principal confusion risk is I. sturmii, but present species is paler (not dark grey) and has pale wing patches; in Asia, distinguished from slightly smaller but marginally longer-billed I. sinensis by blackish (not brown) back and whitish to grey-buff (not yellow-buff) wing patches (the two species breed sympatrically in S Oman) (3 Eriksen, H. and Eriksen, J. (1999). The first records of Yellow Bittern Ixobrychus sinensis in Oman and Arabia. Sandgrouse. 21(2): 178–179. Close , 4 Eriksen, J., and R. Victor (2013). Oman Bird List: the Official List of the Birds of the Sultanate of Oman. Seventh edition. Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Oman. Close ), and from I. cinnamomeus by dark (not cinnamon) back and cap. Male has blackish crown and modest crest, greyish face-sides, back, tail and flight feathers  also blackish, with buff-white wing-coverts  , white underwings and buffish-white underparts, sometimes with slight streaking. Lores and base of bill  range in colour from lemon-yellow to orangish yellow , sometimes flushing red  during courtship ; legs variable shade of yellow or green, typically yellow behind; eyes yellow; bill yellow or yellow-green, with dar brown culmen ridge. Female can have more contrasted plumage, more similar to that of male, but is typically smaller (2 Delelis, N. (2006). Sur les données de baguage du Blongios nain Ixobrychus minutus. Alauda. 74(1): 187–188. Close ) and duller  , with a brown  or rufous  tone to dark parts of plumage, smaller and slightly streaked wing patches, and streaked underparts. Juvenile as adult female, but more heavily streaked overall, with brown-streaked crown and heavily mottled brown and buff wing-coverts. Races separated on measurements and coloration of head, neck and upperwing: payesii  smaller and shorter-winged than nominate, with neck and wing patches more red-brown to chestnut, rather than buff, irides red-brown in courtship and legs olive-green in front, yellow behind; <em>podiceps</em> smaller than both previous races (wing of male 123–133 mm, versus 149–157 mm in nominate) (5 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), with adult male having deep rufous on neck, underparts and underwing, and chestnut upperparts, while juvenile is darker than nominate. Extinct I. novaezelandiae, previously treated as subspecies of the present species, was larger and darker than any race of I. minutus, with dark reddish-brown mantle and scapulars, chestnut hindneck, chestnut-spotted wing patches and female was more heavily streaked below.

Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Very varied throughout extensive range, from dense forest to deserts; from lowlands to hills, up to 1600 m in Madagascar (5 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), 1660 m in Zambia (7 Dowsett, R. J., D. R. Aspinwall, and F. Dowsett-Lemaire (2008). The Birds of Zambia. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ), 1800 m in Kashmir (W Himalayas) and 2400 m in Ethiopia (8 Ash, J. S., and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: An Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), but mainly below 500 m in W Palearctic (1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ) (although recorded to 2100 m on passage in Turkey) (9 Kirwan, G. M., K. A. Boyla, P. Castell, B. Demirci, M. Özen, H. Welch, and T. Marlow (2008). The Birds of Turkey: The Distribution, Taxonomy and Breeding of Turkish Birds. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). For example, in E Africa, typically favours small, well-vegetated swamps, marshes and drainage ditches (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ). Most commonly in freshwater marshes with reedbeds or other kinds of dense aquatic vegetation (Scirpus, Typha, Phragmites, Baumea and Juncus) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), preferably with bushes or trees (e.g. Melaleuca, Muehlenbeckia) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ); margins of lakes, pools, reservoirs, peat bogs, oases. Also in wooded swamps, overgrown banks of streams and rivers, wet grassland and rice fields; in places, frequents mangroves and margins of saline lagoons. During migration and in winter occurs on more open waters, and even in heavily disturbed (even comparatively urban) zones, as well as dry land including fields of cereals or sugar cane.

Race minutus undergoes post-breeding dispersal in all directions, commencing Jul (1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ) (see Family Text ); also migrates S from Palearctic towards tropical Africa and S to Cape, wintering mostly in S & E half of continent, although southernmost populations, e.g. in N Africa and Middle East (e.g. in Saudi Arabia), can be at least partially sedentary (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close , 11 Jennings, M. C. (2010). Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Arabia. Fauna of Arabia 25. King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, Saudi Wildlife Commission and Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut und Naturmuseum, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Frankfurt, Germany. Close ); migration mostly nocturnal, but can be diurnal; normally in small flocks (see Family Text ), exceptionally numbering up to c. 150 birds (12 Langman, M. and Langman, T. (2004). Exceptional movement of Little Bitterns. British Birds. 97(11): 626–627. Close , 11 Jennings, M. C. (2010). Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Arabia. Fauna of Arabia 25. King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, Saudi Wildlife Commission and Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut und Naturmuseum, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Frankfurt, Germany. Close ), with mass migration involving 1000s of birds witnessed in autumn in N Sinai (13 Combridge, P. (2005). Large-scale movements of Little Bitterns. British Birds. 98(4): 211. Close ). Crosses Arabia and Sahara on broad front. Peak migration across N Africa in Aug–Oct and Mar–May, reaching breeding areas in C Europe and Russia in Apr to early May (1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), but nominate minutus present as far S as Zambia between 11 Nov and 22 Apr (7 Dowsett, R. J., D. R. Aspinwall, and F. Dowsett-Lemaire (2008). The Birds of Zambia. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ) and Eritrea on 11 May (8 Ash, J. S., and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: An Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Evidence from Senegal suggests that at least some individuals return to same sites each winter (14 Sauvage, A., Rumsey, S. and Rodwell, S. (1998). Recurrence of Palaearctic birds in the lower Senegal river valley. Malimbus. 20(1): 33–53. Close ). Birds regularly overshoot on return, with sightings N to Iceland, Faeroes (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ) and Scandinavia; regularly turns up in Azores, Madeira and Canaries, with one record in Cape Verdes (15 Hazevoet, C.J. (1999). Notes on birds from the Cape Verde Islands in the collection of the Centro de Zoologia, Lisbon, with comments on taxonomy and distribution. Bull. Brit. Orn. Club 119(1):25–31. Close ) (specimen originally thought to involve Afrotropical payesii) (16 Hazevoet, C. J. (1995). The Birds of the Cape Verde Islands. An Annotated Checklist. BOU Check-list 13. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close ), and an exceptional record on Barbados (Dec 1995; race unknown) (17 Buckley, P.A., Massiah, E.B., Hutt, M.B., Buckley, F.G. and Hutt, H.F. (2009). The Birds of Barbados: An Annotated Checklist. BOU Checklist No. 24. British Ornithologists’ Union & British Ornithologists’ Club, Peterborough. Close ). Populations in N India, apparently resident with some local movements, and has occasionally occurred in W China (18 Grimmett, R.F.A. and Taylor, H. (1992). Recent bird observations from Xinjiang Autonomous region, China, 16 June to 5 July 1988. Forktail. 7: 139–146. Close ). Race payesii performs movements connected with fluctuations in water level; straggles to Canaries. Race podiceps was reported to move from Madagascar to Africa during dry season, but based on misidentified specimens from Zanzibar, and no evidence even for intra-Malagasy movements (5 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Varies with region and season, e.g. in South Africa, Spain and NW India, in breeding season, adults  and nestlings feed principally on fish (19 Holmes, P.R. and Hatchwell, B.J. (1991). Notes on the ecology of the Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus at Haigam Rakh, Kashmir, India. Forktail. 6: 25–33. Close , 20 Martínez-Abraín, A. (1994). Nota sobre la biologia de Ixobrychus m. minutus (L.) durante el periodo de reproducción en Valencia (E. España). Ardeola. 41(2): 169–171. Close ), but elsewhere (e.g. France, Italy) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close , 21 Delelis, N. (2006). Note sur le régime alimentaire du Blongios nain Ixobrychus minutus dans le Marais Audomarois (Pas-de-Calais). Alauda. 74(1): 76. Close ), essentially insectivorous, taking aquatic insects and their larvae (e.g., Hemiptera (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close ), Libellula and Aeshna dragonflies) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), crickets (Gryllotalpa) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), grasshoppers, caterpillars, beetles (Notonecta, Naucoris) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), etc. Also feeds on worms (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), spiders, molluscs, crustaceans (shrimps, crayfish) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ) and small vertebrates , including fish (e.g., Carassius, Hypopthalmichthys (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close ), Perca, Esox, Alburnus, Blicca, Cyprinus, Gambusia, Gobio, Eupomotis, Leuciscus) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), frogs (Rana) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), tadpoles , eggs (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), small reptiles  (once a c. 285 mm Balkan Green Lizard Lacerta trilineata) (23 de Knijff, P. and Hoffer, M.J.V. (2002). Little Bittern swallowing large lizard. Dutch Birding. 24(4): 220–222. Close ) and birds, perhaps including young Clamorous Reed-warblers (Acrocephalus stentoreus) (11 Jennings, M. C. (2010). Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Arabia. Fauna of Arabia 25. King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, Saudi Wildlife Commission and Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut und Naturmuseum, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Frankfurt, Germany. Close ). Mainly active around dawn and dusk, but also feeds during day  ; race payesii apparently more strongly diurnal, with peak activity in middle of day in South Africa. Like all Ixobrychus feeds alone, either by standing motionless or Walking Slowly (occasionally Walking Quickly) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ) partially hidden amidst vegetation; defends feeding territory (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ). Bait-fishing occasionally recorded, birds using insects (e.g. dragonflies or grasshoppers) to attract fish (24 Réglade, M.A., Bonhomme, M. and Chapuis, F. (2013). Bait-fishing Little Bittern. British Birds. 106(7): 409–410. Close ). In NW India, of 123 feeding attempts recorded over three hours, at least 77 (62·6%) were successful (19 Holmes, P.R. and Hatchwell, B.J. (1991). Notes on the ecology of the Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus at Haigam Rakh, Kashmir, India. Forktail. 6: 25–33. Close ).

Rather silent except during breeding season (1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ). Distinctive croaking, barking or grunting call in advertisement, far-carrying, often described as frog-like and easily drowned out by real frogs, variously rendered “kohr, kohr, kohr, kohr”, “hork, hork, hork, hork” or “gogh, gogh, gogh, gogh”, repeated at 3–5-second intervals in Madagascar (podiceps) (5 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); in flight, gives low-pitched and abrupt-sounding “kuk-kuk, kuk-kak”, “cuck, cuck, cuck, cuck” or more throaty “cra, a, a, a, k”, sometimes preceded by higher-pitched “quee”; a “gek, gek, gek, gek” around nest and a similar “gack” or “yick” in alarm or threat, an “aark” in anxiety, and a “goo, goo” in greeting, while young beg with “tu, tu, tu, tu” call (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ).

In W Palearctic (including N Africa) and India nesting mainly May–Jul, but probably earlier in Arabia (11 Jennings, M. C. (2010). Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Arabia. Fauna of Arabia 25. King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, Saudi Wildlife Commission and Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut und Naturmuseum, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Frankfurt, Germany. Close ) and once as early as Mar in Armenia (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close ); in tropical Africa season variable, generally related to rains, thus Jul–Oct in W Africa, Jun–Sept in Nigeria, May–Sept in Congo, Jul, Nov–Dec in Uganda (25 Carswell, M., D. Pomeroy, J. Reynolds, and H. Tushabe (2005). The Bird Atlas of Uganda. British Ornithologists’ Club and British Ornithologists' Union, Oxford, UK. Close ), Mar–Jul in Zambia (7 Dowsett, R. J., D. R. Aspinwall, and F. Dowsett-Lemaire (2008). The Birds of Zambia. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ), Apr–May in Malawi (26 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2006). The Birds of Malawi: An Atlas and Handbook. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ), May–Jul in Zimbabwe (27 Hustler, K. and Ambrose, F. (2001). Notes on the breeding biology of the Rufous-bellied Heron and Little Bittern at Kazungula. Honeyguide. 47(1): 7–9. Close ), Jun–Feb in South Africa and Nov–Dec in Madagascar (5 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Monogamous. Generally solitary, although sometimes forms small, loose groups in particularly favourable areas, wherein nests may sometimes be just 5 m apart, more usually 30–100 m distant (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), sometimes marginally associated with other herons such as Ardea purpurea (9 Kirwan, G. M., K. A. Boyla, P. Castell, B. Demirci, M. Özen, H. Welch, and T. Marlow (2008). The Birds of Turkey: The Distribution, Taxonomy and Breeding of Turkish Birds. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ) or other waterbirds, e.g. Pygmy Cormorant (Microcarbo pygmaeus) (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close ). Nest normally in aquatic vegetation (reeds, rushes, grasses or papyrus), often within 2–15 m of open water and just 12–150 cm above water level (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close , 1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close , 26 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2006). The Birds of Malawi: An Atlas and Handbook. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close , 27 Hustler, K. and Ambrose, F. (2001). Notes on the breeding biology of the Rufous-bellied Heron and Little Bittern at Kazungula. Honeyguide. 47(1): 7–9. Close ), but alternatively low (up to 2 m above ground) (1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ) in bushes or trees (tea trees, alder, willow), and in E Asia occasionally high in trees over dry land; nest has conical base and is shallow platform of reeds and twigs lined with leaves or finer stems, 150–350 mm in diameter, up to 142 cm high (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close ) and 50–100 mm thick, constructed by male (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ) over period of 4–5 days (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close ). May re-use same nest in subsequent season (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ). In W Palearctic usually single- but sometimes double-brooded (or lays replacement clutch if first is lost) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close , 28 Gruwier, X., Dufresne, L. and Morand, A. (2006). Observation d’une deuxième reproduction chez une femelle baguée de Blongios nain. Alauda. 74(1): 180–182. Close , 29 Samraoui, F., Nedjah, R., Boucheker, A., Alfarhan, A.H. and Samraoui, B. (2012). Breeding ecology of the Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus in northeast Algeria. Bird Study. 59(4): 496–503. Close ); in South Africa often two, sometimes three, albeit with smaller numbers of eggs (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ) and decreasing brood size also observed in Algeria, in this case apparently in response to habitat destruction and disturbance (29 Samraoui, F., Nedjah, R., Boucheker, A., Alfarhan, A.H. and Samraoui, B. (2012). Breeding ecology of the Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus in northeast Algeria. Bird Study. 59(4): 496–503. Close ). Clutch 2–9 white eggs (occasionally greenish) (1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), normally 5–6 in minutus, mainly 3–4 in tropical and subtropical races, laid at intervals of 1–3 days, size 34·4 mm × 26·4 mm (Spain) (20 Martínez-Abraín, A. (1994). Nota sobre la biologia de Ixobrychus m. minutus (L.) durante el periodo de reproducción en Valencia (E. España). Ardeola. 41(2): 169–171. Close ), 29–38 mm × 21–28 mm (Armenia) (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close ), or 34·6 mm × 26·6 mm (South Africa) (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), mass 9·4–13·6 g (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close ); incubation 16–21 days, by both adults, commencing with first (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), second or third egg (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close ); chicks hatch asynchronously and have reddish-buff (payesii), or pink-buff (minutus) down (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), white below, with black irides, dull pink to grey bill, blue-grey to olive-yellow facial skin, and olive-grey legs and feet with pink toes (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), mean mass c. 10 g (19 Holmes, P.R. and Hatchwell, B.J. (1991). Notes on the ecology of the Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus at Haigam Rakh, Kashmir, India. Forktail. 6: 25–33. Close ); fledging c. 25–30 days (1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), but young leave nest after 14–16 days (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ); fed mainly by female in one study (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close ). Hatching success 56·6% in South Africa (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), 70–71% in NW India (19 Holmes, P.R. and Hatchwell, B.J. (1991). Notes on the ecology of the Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus at Haigam Rakh, Kashmir, India. Forktail. 6: 25–33. Close ), c. 87% in Algeria (29 Samraoui, F., Nedjah, R., Boucheker, A., Alfarhan, A.H. and Samraoui, B. (2012). Breeding ecology of the Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus in northeast Algeria. Bird Study. 59(4): 496–503. Close ) and c. 93% in NE Spain (30 Pardo-Cervera, F., Sørensen, I.H., Jensen, C., Ruiz, X. and Sánchez-Alonso, C. (2010). Breeding biology of the Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus in the Ebro Delta (NE Spain). Ardeola. 57(2): 407–416. Close ), where maximum recorded fledging success was between 70% and 96% (30 Pardo-Cervera, F., Sørensen, I.H., Jensen, C., Ruiz, X. and Sánchez-Alonso, C. (2010). Breeding biology of the Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus in the Ebro Delta (NE Spain). Ardeola. 57(2): 407–416. Close ), and < 6% of 153 eggs were infertile or predated (20 Martínez-Abraín, A. (1994). Nota sobre la biologia de Ixobrychus m. minutus (L.) durante el periodo de reproducción en Valencia (E. España). Ardeola. 41(2): 169–171. Close ) (predation levels reached 17·6% in Algerian study) (29 Samraoui, F., Nedjah, R., Boucheker, A., Alfarhan, A.H. and Samraoui, B. (2012). Breeding ecology of the Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus in northeast Algeria. Bird Study. 59(4): 496–503. Close ). One nest in Armenia also contained two eggs of Ferruginous Duck (Aythya nyroca), while another had a single Common Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus) egg, latter suspected to be result of bitterns taking over old nest belonging to the moorhen, but former might be indicative of misdirected parasitism (22 Adamian, M. S., and D. Klem (1999). Handbook of the Birds of Armenia. American University of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia. Close ). Sexual maturity in females < 2 years (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ). No data on mean adult survival rates or longevity.

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Has declined since mid-20th century in parts of W Palearctic, due to habitat destruction, pollution and perhaps also drought conditions in Africa between 1968 and 1995 (31 Marion, L., Barbier, L. and Morin, C. (2006). Statut du Blongios nain Ixobrychus minutus en France entre 1968 et 22532534 et causes probables de l’evolution de ses effectifs [Status of Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus in France between 1968 and 22532534 and causes of population changes]. Alauda. 74(1): 155–170. Close ): in Belgium, 100–200 pairs before 1960, reduced to 60 pairs by end of 1970s; in France, c. 2000 pairs in 1968, down to 250 pairs in 1990, a decline of 88%, followed by subsequent recovery to 670 pairs in 2003/04 (32 Faure, F. and Darblade, S. (2006). Suivi de la population nicheuse de Blongios nain Ixobrychus minutus des étangs de l’arrière-dune Marensine (Landes, France) [Monitoring Little Bittern breeding population from lagoons behind coastal dunes in the Marensin (Landes, France)]. Alauda. 74(1): 77–84. Close , 31 Marion, L., Barbier, L. and Morin, C. (2006). Statut du Blongios nain Ixobrychus minutus en France entre 1968 et 22532534 et causes probables de l’evolution de ses effectifs [Status of Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus in France between 1968 and 22532534 and causes of population changes]. Alauda. 74(1): 155–170. Close , 33 Mur, P., Paikine, O., Riegel, J., Roche, H.-P. and Biero, T. (2006). Historique et principaux résultats du suivi de la population de Blongios nain au parc départemental de la Courneuve (Seine-Saint-Denis) [History and monitoring of Little Bittern population in the Courneuve Departemental Park (Seine-Saint-Denis)]. Alauda. 74(1): 121–132. Close ); other obvious declines noted in Israel, Luxemburg, Netherlands (where currently increasing following 95% decline) (34 van Turnhout, C. A. M., E. J. M. Hagemeijer and R. P. B. Foppen (2010). Long-term population developments in typical marshland birds in The Netherlands. Ardea 98(3):283–299. Close ), Germany, Estonia, Lithuania and Poland (1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ). Has occasionally bred in Britain, with first proven case in 1984 and several possible and two confirmed records since start present century, in line with increase in populations of other southern herons in UK (35 Holling, M., and The Rare Breeding Birds Panel (2011). Rare breeding birds in the United Kingdom in 2009. British Birds 104(9):476–537. Close , 36 Holling, M., and The Rare Breeding Birds Panel (2013). Rare breeding birds in the United Kingdom in 2011. British Birds 106(9):496–554. Close ). W Palearctic population estimated at somwehere in excess of 37,000 pairs, with most important populations in Hungary (3500–6000 pairs), Spain (1900–2300 pairs), Italy (1000–2000 pairs), Romania (10,000–20,000 pairs), Russia (10,000–50,000 pairs, but decreasing), Ukraine (5000–6000 pairs) and Turkey (> 1000 pairs, but also declining) (1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close , 9 Kirwan, G. M., K. A. Boyla, P. Castell, B. Demirci, M. Özen, H. Welch, and T. Marlow (2008). The Birds of Turkey: The Distribution, Taxonomy and Breeding of Turkish Birds. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Since 1975, recognized to be scarce but regular breeder in Arabia, mainly in E, from Kuwait to S Oman, with perhaps > 500 pairs in total of which c. 200 pairs around Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) (37 Jennings, M. C. (2004). Breeding birds in central Arabia, 1978–2003. Sandgrouse 26(1):35–47. Close , 11 Jennings, M. C. (2010). Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Arabia. Fauna of Arabia 25. King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, Saudi Wildlife Commission and Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut und Naturmuseum, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Frankfurt, Germany. Close ); first proven breeding on Cyprus in 2004 (38 Whaley, D.J. and Dawes, J.C. (2005). Heron breeding records in Cyprus 243433–243434. Sandgrouse. 27(2): 160–162. Close ). Frequent to uncommon in Africa, where apparently increasing in Egypt and Tunisia (1 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ), and only recently proven to breed in Libya, but is probably regular breeder in small numbers (39 Hering, J. and Fuchs, E. (2010). First breeding record for Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus in Libya. Bull. Afr. Bird Club. 18(2): 219–220. Close ); rare breeder in South Africa, probably with fewer than 100 pairs, but perhaps as many as 10,000 individuals in Tanzania (10 Kushlan, J. A., and J. A. Hancock (2005). The Herons. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ); uncommon in Madagascar, where only known from a few localities, and population is placed at 3000–15,000 birds (5 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). At Haigam Rakh, in Kashmir (NW India), c. 1000–2000 breeding pairs in area of 1400 ha; records in NE Indian Subcontinent considered to be possibly erroneous, reflecting confusion with I. sinensis (40 Rasmussen, P. C., and J. C. Anderton (2005). Birds of South Asia: the Ripley Guide. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain. Close ), but species has recently been discovered in breeding season as far S as Goa (41 Borges, S.D. and Shanbhag, A.B. (2007). Additions to the avifauna of Goa, India. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. 104(1): 98–101. Close ).