Bittern II
Bittern project
The Broads Authority has bought 42 hectares of arable land next to the How Hill Nature Reserve. The land is being encouraged to revert to a wetland to attract bitterns and other rare, water-loving birds as part of a European Union LIFE project. There are only about 30 breeding pairs of bitterns in this country, about 10 of which are in Norfolk.
Other partners in the project are the RSPB, English Nature, several Wildlife Trusts and the Lee Valley Park (close to north London). The partners have a total of 19 project sites between them.
The work at How Hill involves extra reed-bed creation, re-profiling dykes to make them more wildlife friendly, and creating at least six shallow lagoons which will be stocked with fish from the dykes. All this will promote the growth of a healthy reed-bed. The project has been greatly assisted by the work being carried out by Broadland Environmental Services Limited to strengthen banks on the River Ant which runs through How Hill.
The work at How Hill will also act as an important demonstration project for conservation work funded by the Environmentally Sensitive Areas Area (ESA) Scheme and we hope to establish a reed-bed creation case study with the Rural Development Service.
The new marsh is called Buttle Marsh, after one of the old names for a bittern. You can see it from local public footpaths.
Bittern facts
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Bittern numbers are estimated from the number of male bitterns that 'boom' in the spring breeding season. They do this to attract females and establish their territory - each male has a unique voice.
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Bitterns look like a small, brown heron but with a shorter neck. They are about as tall as a welly boot and yet only weigh about the same as a bag of sugar.
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The average booming territory of UK bitterns is about 20 hectares (or about 24 football pitches).
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When alarmed, bitterns imitate the reeds by sticking their head up straight and swaying in the breeze.
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Bitterns used to be hunted for food. In Norfolk they were sometimes known as a 'butterbump' because they have so much fat on them.
- Their booming sound can be heard up to half a mile away.
