COMMON BITTERN. 211 



The Rev. W. B. Stonehouse, already quoted, says, " The 

 Bittern always changes its haunts in the dusk of the evening, 

 and then, rising in a spiral direction, soars to a vast height. 

 It flies in the same heavy manner as a Heron, and might be 

 mistaken for that bird, were it not for the singularly resound- 

 ing cry which it utters from time to time while on the wing ; 

 but this cry is feeble when compared to the hollow booming 

 noise which it makes during the night time, in the breeding- 

 season, from its swampy retreats." When on the ground 

 wounded, the Bittern will strike at dog or man ; and some 

 care is necessary, when about to handle one, to avoid a blow 

 from the point of its sharp beak. If a dog advances upon 

 one that is not entirely disabled, the bird throws itself on its 

 back, like a Hawk, and fights with its claws as well as with 

 its bill ; and, owing to the length to which the drawn- in 

 neck can suddenly be extended, approach is often attended 

 with danger to the incautious. 



In ' The Zoologist ' for 1883 (p. 223) Capt. H. E. Kelham 

 gives the following description of a migration of this 

 species : — " On December 15th last, when steaming from 

 Alexandria to Cairo about sunset, a flock of forty or fifty 

 large birds appeared slowly flapping towards us. When a 

 long way off I at first mistook them for Lapwings, but as 

 they passed close over us I saw they were Bitterns, the 

 common Botaurus stellaris. I never before saw so many 

 together, but there was no doubt whatever about the species. 

 They flew in a V formation, but every now and then got into 

 great confusion, as if they had suddenly been fired at." 



In the choice of its food the Bittern is not very particular, 

 feeding on small mammals, birds, fishes, lizards, and frogs : 

 in fact anything which can be swallowed whole. In the 

 stomach of one examined in January, 1826, the Author 

 found the bones of a pike of considerable size, and the 

 stomach of another examined in February, 1820, contained 

 a Water Rail whole, and six small fishes. In the stomachs 

 of two examined by Mr. Blyth, two dace, the remains of 

 other fish, and some large coleopterous insects, were found. 



The Bittern was formerly in some estimation as an article 



