Least bittern
The least bittern was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae.[2] Gmelin based his description on the "minute bittern" from Jamaica that had been included by the English ornithologist John Latham in his multi-volume work A General Synopsis of Birds.Thanks to its habit of perching among the reeds, the least bittern can feed from the surface of water that would be too deep for the wading strategy of other herons.John James Audubon noted that a young captive least bittern was able to walk with ease between two books standing 4 cm (1.6 in) apart.Nest of strips of rushes woven together to form a platform and fastened to saw grass growing on the bank of a stream.These birds migrate from the northern parts of their range in winter to the southernmost coasts of the United States and areas further south, travelling at night.[citation needed] They mainly eat fish, frogs, crustaceans, insects and small mammals,[28] which they capture with quick jabs of their bill while climbing through marsh plants.
Conservation statusLeast ConcernIUCN 3.1Scientific classificationEukaryotaAnimaliaChordataPelecaniformesArdeidaeBotaurusBinomial nameGmelin, JFSynonymsAmericasformally describedJohann Friedrich GmelinCarl LinnaeusSystema NaturaeJohn Lathammolecular phylogeneticparaphyleticJames Francis StephensMedieval LatinsubspeciesVan RossemVieillotChapmanBond, Jsuperspecieslittle bitternyellow bitternrufousCharles CoryCaloosahatchee RiverLake OkeechobeeElliott CouesRichard Bowdler SharpeFrank ChapmanOutram Bangsjunior synonymAmerican Ornithologists' UnionSouth Padre Islanddwarf bitternblack-backed bitternstripe-backed bitterncovert feathersAmerican bitternJohn James AudubonmarshesCanadaArgentinamigrateInternational Union for Conservation of NatureMigratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesGmelin, Johann FriedrichLatham, JohnGill, FrankRasmussen, PamelaDavid SibleyRoyal Ontario MuseumInternet Bird CollectionWikidataWikispeciesARKiveAvibaseBirdLifeEURINGFauna EuropaeaFauna Europaea (new)iNaturalistNatureServeNeotropicalObservation.orgOpen Tree of LifePaleobiology DatabaseXeno-canto