Yellow Bittern

The yellow bittern is a small bittern, 36–38cm long, with a short neck, a longish ivory bill that is darker on top, yellow-green legs, a short black tail and yellow eyes. The male has a dark cap, chestnut head and neck, a uniformly dull yellow back and buff underparts. The female's cap, neck and breast are streaked, with a rufous hindneck and upper back and streaked red-brown and buff underparts. Juveniles are like females but more boldly streaked. It was moved from Ixobrychus to Botaurus after a 2023 study (Wikipedia, general species account).

It lives in freshwater marshes and swamps and nests on small platforms of reeds or twigs in reedbeds or in trees and shrubs beside or over water, laying four to six pale blue-green eggs. It feeds on insects, fish, amphibians, crustaceans and molluscs. It is mainly resident, though some northern birds migrate short distances. SoIB 2023 lists it as resident in India with local movements and a large range, finds its trends uncertain, and rates it a Low conservation priority (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).