Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2023L00138:front:0:p4
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2023L00138
Segment Type: other
Provision Reference: 
Character Range: 9070–12034

buff, in complex patterns that aid the bird's concealment in swamp vegetation. The under-parts of the body are streaked and scalloped, brown and buff. The species has a prominent black–brown stripe running down the side of the neck, the eyebrow is pale, and the chin and upper throat are white. The bill is straight, pointed and straw yellow to buff in colour with a dark grey ridge. The legs and feet are pale green to olive and the eyes are orange–brown or yellow (Marchant and Higgins 1990; Pizzey and Knight 1997). Darker and paler variants of the plumage have been observed in adults. Juveniles are generally paler than adults and have heavier buff flecking on the back (Marchant and Higgins 1990; Pizzey and Knight 1997).

   Australasian Bitterns occur mainly in freshwater wetlands in the temperate southeast and southwest of Australia and, exceptionally, in estuaries or tidal wetlands (Marchant and Higgins 1990). Australasian Bitterns' preferred habitat comprises wetlands with dense vegetation, especially where there is a mosaic of cover, from 0.5–3.5 metres in height, where they forage in still, shallow water up to 0.3 m deep, often at the edges of pools or waterways, or from platforms or mats of vegetation over deep water. They favour permanent and seasonal freshwater habitats, particularly those dominated by sedges, rushes and/or reeds (e.g. Phragmites, Cyperus, Eleocharis, Juncus, Typha, Baumea, Bolboschoenus) or cutting grass (Gahnia) growing over a muddy or peaty substrate, as well as rice crops (Marchant and Higgins 1990). In south-western Australia the species also occurs in wetlands where thickets of wetland shrubs (e.g. Melaleuca, Agonis spp.) provide patches of tall cover within sedge-dominated habitat. In the Murray–Darling Basin, Australasian Bitterns occur in floodplain swamps that may include lignum (Duma florulenta) shrubs within sedge or reed beds as well as in commercial rice-fields (NSW Riverina). Despite occurring in a range of wetland types, breeding is known to occur in a much smaller sub-set of locations.

1.4            Species distribution in Australia

             In Australia, the Australasian Bittern occurs from south-east Queensland to south-east South Australia as far as the Adelaide Region, southern Eyre Peninsula, Tasmania and in the southwest of Western Australia (Jaensch et al. 1988; Marchant and Higgins 1990; Garnett et al. 2011; Figure 1). Vagrants have also been recorded from northern Australia, including one record from Argyle Downs in the extreme north east of Western Australia (Marchant and Higgins 1990). Due to geographical isolation over 1,500 km of mainland without suitable habitat, the population can be divided into two subpopulations, the south-eastern and south-western subpopulations. The Australasian Bittern also occurs in New Zealand and New Caledonia (Marchant and Higgins 1990).

             In Queensland, the species occurs as far north as Yeppoon and west to