![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/LeastBitternWalkOnNaturalCrooksDotCom.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nI quickly learned the fastest ways to find the Least Bittern were to<\/p>\n
- \n
- look for a crowd of people with tripods and astonishingly large lenses on cameras; and\/or<\/li>\n
- listen for a flurry of mechanical clicks, ticks and whirrs as shutters exploded into action whenever the diminutive bird moved<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
In fact there were so many photographers jostling for a shot of this elusive quarry that the first two times I visited the park I didn\u2019t even try to take a photo. I just stayed in the back, watching for a few minutes in case the bird departed over night.<\/p>\n
How Unusual Is a Least Bittern?<\/h2>\n
![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/LeastBitternSnackOnNaturalCrooksDotCom-400x335.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nI knew seeing any Bittern was unusual. They are secretive birds and their favourite habitat is deep among the rushes and cattails where they blend in beautifully. In fact, most reports I\u2019ve read of Bitterns come from people who have heard them calling rather than seen them hunting.<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t until after I started researching a bit that I found that Least Bitterns may be even more rare. They are currently listed as \u201cthreatened\u201d both provincially in Ontario and nationally in Canada. They are therefore protected by the Endangered Species Act. According to the ROM website<\/strong><\/a>, no one is entirely certain how at risk they are; It is hard to know how common they used to be due to their preference for secluded swamps.<\/p>\n
Still, it was interesting to read that the Act \u201cprohibits any activities\u2026i.e. harassing\u2026.<\/strong><\/a>\u201d I wonder if the bird considered the paparazzi of photographers harassment?<\/p>\n
I\u2019m not sure it did. For at least three weeks, the bird continued to hunt along an essentially open stretch of canal while dogged every step by at least one photographer. It could and did repeatedly catch prey while only 2 metres (or fewer) away from excited photographers trying to freeze frame the action.<\/p>\n
How Does a Juvenile Least Bittern Differ from an Adult?<\/h2>\n
![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/LeastBitternHairOnNaturalCrooksDotCom-400x363.jpg\")
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