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Bitterns in Rice Project Update by Matt Herring

It’s with great joy that I share this news. Any niggling doubts I’ve had about the likelihood of widespread breeding in rice crops have evaporated. There it was – a glowing beacon of bittern reproduction: three chicks and two eggs. After so much effort, I was beginning to worry that someone would find that I’d ‘bittern the dust’ out in a rice paddock somewhere without having found a single nest!

Since last season, we’ve known that very significant numbers of the endangered Australasian Bittern (Botaurus poiciloptilus) use rice crops in the NSW Riverina. Many things have pointed toward there being widespread breeding, but until now the Bitterns in Rice Project had been unable to find an active nest or other conclusive evidence of breeding in rice crops.

The landholders are delighted. Like many rice farmers, they’re familiar with this special bird and have a real soft spot for them. There is plenty of time for the chicks to fledge (approx. 55 days) before their crop is harvested. And in a bizarre coincidence, the property is called ‘Tarkoori’, an Aboriginal word for Australasian Bittern. I presume the ‘Tar’ is the male sucking air in and the ‘koori’ is the boom. Go on, try it.

Sure, it’s only one nest, but more are bound to follow, and the site is just one of many randomly selected rice farms (with aerially-sown or dry-sown crops) in the Coleambally region where bitterns have been recorded. As of yesterday, across the NSW Riverina rice-growing regions, we passed the 50-individual mark for bitterns confirmed in rice crops this season.

It’s clearer than ever that birds don’t arrive in the crops until the rice is about 30 cm and in mid-December that meant a smaller proportion of sites supported them because of the late season. From where they came once the crops were tall enough, we can only speculate. It’s intriguing. There are already a few sites that now have rice above 80cm and if last season is any indication, the males will quieten by about mid-February, so we only have a couple of weeks of the main survey window remaining.

Stay tuned, as we interrogate the data, comparing bittern and non-bittern sites, so we can continue to develop our bittern-friendly rice-growing tips for interested growers. This really is a wonderful example of how Australian farms can simultaneously produce food and support endangered species.

All rice farmers are asked to keep their ears and eyes out for bitterns, especially on dawn and dusk. Sightings can be reported online via the Birdlife Australia website (birdlife.org.au/projects/bittern-project/bitterns-in-rice-project), or by contacting Neil Bull (0428 603 557 nbull@rga.org.au), Andrew Silcocks (andrew.silcoks@birdlife.org.au, 03 9347 0757), or Mark Robb of Coleambally Irrigation (mrobb@colyirr.com.au, 02 6950 2850).

The Bitterns in Rice Project is a collaboration between the Rice Growers’ Association of Australia and Birdlife Australia, with key support from the Norman Wettenhall Foundation; the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation; the Murrumbidgee and Murray Catchment Management Authorities; Coleambally, Murrumbidgee and Murray Irrigation; Coleambally and Murrumbidgee Landcare; the Murrumbidgee Field Naturalists club; and the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service