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The American bittern is a medium-sized heron with a long, thick neck and a long, pointed bill. It is a solitary bird, mostly nocturnal bird that keeps itself hidden amongst dense vegetation. It is more often heard than seen with the male producing a distinctive booming sound that can be heard for several miles around.
It is well-camouflaged with brown, buff, and white streaked plumage. The side of the neck has a blue-black patch which is larger in the male than the female. It has brown cheeks and a buff supercilium and moustachial stripe. The bill, legs, and feet are yellow-green coloured.
When alarmed American bitterns they stand motionless with the bill pointing upwards which helps them to blend into the background.
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American bitterns eat insects, amphibians, and small fish. It hunts by walking in shallow water stalking its prey or waiting motionless before catching the prety with a sudden thrust of its bill.
American bitterns breed in North America in southern Canada and much of the northern and central United States, inhabiting bogs, marshes, reedbeds, and shallow-water lakes and ponds. It spends its winter in the US Gulf Coast states, the Caribbean, and parts of Central America.
