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Bitterns

Conservation Of Bitterns

Habitat losses associated with the drainage of wetlands for agricultural and residential developments are the most important threats to bitterns in North America and elsewhere. Pollution may also be significant in degrading habitat in some regions.

As a result of these and other stressors, the populations of both American bitterns and least bitterns are widely acknowledged as having declined substantially in North America. There is significant concern about the population status of both species in most parts of their ranges in the United States and Canada.

Like so many other species that require wetlands as habitat, the survival of bitterns can only be ensured by caring for the ecosystems of which they are an integral part. In this case, the key is the conservation and protection of wetlands.


Resources

Books

Bird Families of the World. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998.

Ehrlich, P. R., D. S. Dobkin, and D. Wheye. Birds in Jeopardy. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1992.

Forshaw, Joseph. Encyclopedia of Birds. New York: Academic Press, 1998.

Marquis, M. Herons. London: Colin Baxter, 1993.


Bill Freedman

KEY TERMS

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Marsh

—A type of productive wetland that is dominated by tall, emergent plants, such as reeds, bulrushes, and cattails.

Superspecies

—A complex of closely related groups of organisms that are geographically, ecologically, and morphologically distinct, but are nevertheless considered to be the same species. The seasise sparrows are a superspecies, in which many of the various subspecies were formerly believed to be separate species.

Wader

—This is a general term for various longlegged, long-necked, long-beaked, short-tailed birds of marshes and swamps that stand in shallow water while stalking their prey. Waders include species in the heron family, as well as birds in other families, such as storks, ibises, flamingos, spoonbills, and cranes.

Additional topics

Science EncyclopediaScience & Philosophy: Bilateral symmetry to Boolean algebraBitterns - Species Of Bitterns, Conservation Of Bitterns