Ixobrychus minutus (*)
Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Cladus: Craniata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Classis: Reptilia
Cladus: Eureptilia
Cladus: Romeriida
Subclassis: Diapsida
Cladus: Sauria
Infraclassis: Archosauromorpha
Cladus: Crurotarsi
Divisio: Archosauria
Subsectio: Ornithodira
Subtaxon: Dinosauromorpha
Cladus: Dinosauria
Ordo: Saurischia
Cladus: Theropoda
Cladus: Neotheropoda
Infraclassis: Aves
Cladus: Euavialae
Cladus: Avebrevicauda
Cladus: Pygostylia
Cladus: Ornithothoraces
Cladus: Euornithes
Cladus: Ornithuromorpha
Cladus: Ornithurae
Cladus: Carinatae
Parvclassis: Neornithes
Cohors: Neognathae
Ordo: Pelecaniformes
Familia: Ardeidae
Subfamilia: Botaurinae
Genus: Ixobrychus
Species: Ixobrychus minutus
Subspecies: I. m. minutus – I. m. payesii – I. m. podiceps
Name
Ixobrychus minutus (Linnaeus, 1766)
Synonymy
Ardea minuta (protonym)
References
Systema Naturae ed.12: 240.
Vernacular names
Afrikaans: Kleinrietreier
العربية: واق صغير
asturianu: Garcina común
azərbaycanca: Kiçik danquşcuq
башҡортса: Ваҡ мөншөгөр
беларуская (тарашкевіца): Малы бугай
беларуская: Малы бугай
български: Малък воден бик
भोजपुरी: गोई बकुला
brezhoneg: Bongorz bihan
català: Martinet menut comú
čeština: Bukáček malý
Чӑвашла: Пĕчĕк чăмăш
Cymraeg: Aderyn bwn leiaf
dansk: Dværghejre
Deutsch: Zwergdommel
Ελληνικά: Μικροτσικνιάς
English: Little Bittern
Esperanto: Malgranda botaŭro
español: Avetorillo Común
eesti: Väikehüüp
euskara: Amiltxori txiki
فارسی: بوتیمار کوچک
suomi: Pikkuhaikara
føroyskt: Vætturhegri
Nordfriisk: Letj raidtromp
français: Blongios nain
Frysk: Woffer
Gaeilge: Aderyn-bwn lleiaf
Gàidhlig: Corra ghrain beag
galego: Garza pequena
ગુજરાતી: નાનું પક્ષી
Gaelg: Coar veg
עברית: אנפית גמדית
hrvatski: Čapljica voljak
magyar: Törpegém
հայերեն: Փոքր Ջրցուլ
íslenska: Rindilþvari
italiano: Tarabusino
日本語: ヒメヨシゴイ
ქართული: პატარა ყარაულა
қазақша: Оқпан
kurdî: Zirbaleban
kernowek: Clabyttour lyha
Lëtzebuergesch: Klenge Räer
lietuvių: Mažasis baublys
latviešu: Mazais dumpis
Malagasy: Fiandrivoditatratra
македонски: Мал воден бик
മലയാളം: ചെറുകൊച്ച
монгол: Бичил одойбух
Malti: Russett tas-Siġar
Nedersaksies: Woudaap
Nederlands: Woudaap
norsk nynorsk: Dvergrørdrum
norsk: Dvergrørdrum
polski: Bączek zwyczajny
پنجابی: نکا بٹرن
português: Garça-pequena
rumantsch: Tarbegl pitschen
română: Stârc pitic
русский: Малая выпь
srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски: Čapljica voljak
slovenčina: Bučiačik močiarny
slovenščina: Čapljica
shqip: Gakthi i vogël
српски / srpski: Чапљица
Sesotho: Khoitinyane
svenska: Dvärgrördrom
Kiswahili: Ngojamaliko
தமிழ்: சிறுகுருகு
Türkçe: Küçük balaban
українська: Бугайчик
اردو: لکسوبرائیچس مائنیوٹس
vèneto: Trentacoste
吴语: 小苇鳽
isiXhosa: Ihashe
Zeêuws: Puteur
中文: 小葦鳽
The little bittern or common little bittern (Ixobrychus minutus) is a wading bird in the heron family, Ardeidae. Ixobrychus is from Ancient Greek ixias, a reed-like plant and brukhomai, to bellow, and minutus is Latin for "small".[2]
Distribution
The little bittern is native to the Old World, breeding in Africa, central and southern Europe, western and southern Asia, and Madagascar. Birds from temperate regions in Europe and western Asia are migratory, wintering in Africa and further south in Asia, while those nesting in the tropics are sedentary. It is rare north of its breeding range.[3]
In Britain there were intermittent reports of breeding in the nineteenth century, and again in 1946 and 1957, but none of these records were proven. The first proven British breeding record is from Yorkshire in 1984,[4] and the second from the Avalon Marshes in Somerset in 2010, by 2017 this species had been present in this area for nine consecutive years.[5]
Taxonomy
Carl Linnaeus described the little bittern in 1766. The three subspecies are:
I. m. minutus – (Linnaeus, 1766): nominate, found in Europe, Asia, northern Africa; winters in sub-Saharan Africa and southern Asia
I. m. payesii – (Hartlaub, 1858): found in sub-Saharan Africa, resident
I. m. podiceps – (Bonaparte, 1855): found in Madagascar, resident
The Australian little bittern (I. dubius) and the extinct New Zealand little bittern (I. novaezelandiae) were formerly considered subspecies of the little bittern.[6]
Description
Egg, Collection Museum Wiesbaden
Immature
The little bittern has a length of 33–38 centimetres (13–15 in) and a wing span of 52–58 centimetres (20–23 in). It is the smallest of the breeding herons of Europe and is characterised by its tiny size, long and sharp bill and thick neck. The males are distinctively patterned and both sexes show pale forewing panels. The males have black with a faint green sheen on the crown, nape, back, tail and scapulars. The underparts are pale buff and the wing has a pinkish buff oval shaped panel which contrasts with the otherwise black wings and is formed by the inner wing coverts. The underwing is completely whiteish in colour. The female is duller than the male and has brownish black upperparts with paler feather margins visible at close range. The underparts of the female are not as clean as those of the male and are streaked with dark buff and brown. The female's wing panel is less obvious than the male's. The juveniles are duller and more rufous than the females and are more heavily streaked on both their upperparts and underparts, including their wing coverts.[4]
Status
The little bittern is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds applies.
Behaviour
The little bittern is crepuscular, skulking and normally solitary. It feeds on fishes, amphibians and insects which are caught within reedbeds or at their edges by the bird slowly stalking the prey. The male claims a territory in the Spring, advertising his presence with a deep barking or croaking call and the monogamous pair remain together for at least one breeding season. Eggs are laid in a nest situated in dense reedbeds, rushes or bushes above the water from the middle of May and there is a single brood which is normally 5-6 eggs. These are incubated for 17–19 days and the chicks are fledged after 25–30 days.[4]
In Europe the little bittern is a migratory species, crossing the Mediterranean from Africa in the early Spring and arriving in their breeding wetlands from mid April onwards. The return to Africa occurs in August and September and there are normally only a few juveniles left in Europe by October. The European breeders migrate as far south as the Eastern Cape and Transvaal.[4]
Little bittern in the Aldomirovtsi Marsh, Bulgaria
An adult during ringing in northern Italy
An immature little bittern, camouflaged in its reed bed habitat
An immature little bittern, in the open, but still near the water
Ixobrychus minutus - MHNT
References
BirdLife International (2019) [amended version of 2018 assessment]. "Ixobrychus minutus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2019: e.T22735766A155511258.
Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp. 208, 256. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
Rasmussen, Pamela C.; Anderton, John C. (2005). Birds of South Asia. The Ripley Guide. ISBN 978-84-87334-67-2.
D. Snow & C.M. Perrins (1998). Birds of the Western Palearctic Concise Edition Volume 1 Non-passerines. Oxford University Press. pp. 105–107. ISBN 978-0198501879.
"The State of the UK's Birds 2017" (PDF). British Trust for Ornithology. Retrieved 25 December 2018.
Christidis, Les; Boles, Walter E. (2008). Systematics and Taxonomy of Australian Birds. CSIRO Publishing. ISBN 978-0-643-06511-6.
del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A.; Sargatal, J., eds. (1992). Handbook of the Birds of the World. 1. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. pp. 425–426. ISBN 978-84-87334-10-8.
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