Bitterns are secretive herons of dense reed beds whose booming calls signal the health of wetland ecosystems. Their recovery from near-extinction in Britain illustrates what targeted conservation can achieve.
Bitterns are so specialised in their habitat requirements that welfare is almost entirely a habitat question. Loss of reed beds to drainage and succession eliminates feeding and nesting sites. Poorly managed reed beds that become overgrown reduce the open water channels where bitterns hunt. Hard winters, when reed beds freeze, cause starvation stress and drive bitterns to exposed locations where they face increased predation. Climate-related extreme weather events are an emerging welfare threat.