Least Bittern (Ixobrychus exilis)

Overview

Overview

Least Bittern (Ixobrychus exilis), Special Concern in Wisconsin, prefers freshwater marshes where cattails and reeds predominate in swamps and marshes and dense emergent vegetation. The recommended avoidance period is 15 May - 15 August.

State status

Status and Natural Heritage Inventory documented occurrences in Wisconsin

The table below provides information about the protected status - both state and federal - and the rank (S and G Ranks) for Least Bittern (Ixobrychus exilis). See the Working List Key for more information about abbreviations. Counties shaded blue have documented occurrences for this species in the Wisconsin Natural Heritage Inventory database. The map is provided as a general reference of where occurrences of this species meet NHI data standards and is not meant as a comprehensive map of all observations.

Note: Species recently added to the NHI Working List may temporarily have blank occurrence maps.

Species guidance

A guidance document is not available at this time. However, the bird calendar [PDF] contains dates for avoiding impacts to this and other rare Wisconsin birds when planning management activities.

Other resources

Links to additional Least Bittern information

• Michigan Natural Features Inventory [PDF exit DNR]
• All About Birds Species Account (Cornell Lab of Ornithology) [exit DNR]

Other links related to birds

• NatureServe Explorer
• All Bird Plan [exit DNR]
• Important Bird Areas [exit DNR]
• All About Birds (Cornell Lab of Ornithology) [exit DNR]
• Wisconsin DNR Bird Nesting Calendar

Photos/Video

Photos

Click to view a larger version. Please considering donating a photo to the Natural Heritage Conservation Program for educational uses. Photo use

Wildlife Action Plan

Natural community (habitat) associations

The table below lists the natural communities that are associated with Least Bittern. Only natural communities for which Least Bittern is "high" (score=3) or "moderate" (score=2) associated are shown. See the key to association scores for complete definitions. Please see the Wildlife Action Plan to learn how this information was developed.

Ecological landscape associations

The table below lists the ecological landscape association scores for Least Bittern. The scores correspond to the map (3=High, 2=Moderate, 1=Low, 0=None). For more information, please see the Wildlife Action Plan.

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Landscape-Community combinations of highest ecological priority*

Ecological priorities are the combinations of natural communities and ecological landscapes that provide Wisconsin's best opportunities to conserve important habitats for a given Species of Greatest Conservation Need. The 10 highest scoring combinations are considered ecological priorities and are listed below. More than 10 combinations are listed if multiple combinations tied for 10th place. For more information, please see the Wildlife Action Plan.

* Ecological priority score is a relative measure that is not meant for comparison between species. This score does not consider socio-economical factors that may dictate protection and/or management priorities differently than those determined solely by ecological analysis. Further, a low ecological priority score does not imply that management or preservation should not occur on a site if there are important reasons for doing so locally.

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Issues/threats and conservation actions

Conservation actions respond to issues or threats, which adversely affect species of greatest conservation need (SGCN) or their habitats. Besides actions such as restoring wetlands or planting resilient tree species in northern communities, research, surveys and monitoring are also among conservation actions described in the WWAP because lack of information can threaten our ability to successfully preserve and care for natural resources.

Threats/issues and conservations actions for rare animals

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