One of the most interesting birds on the move this spring is the American Bittern. Not that you're likely to see one in the air (as in Martin Meyers' wonderful photo above). More likely, you'll catch a glimpse of one camouflaging itself in the tall grass or reeds along the edge of the water or marsh. Yes, the American Bittern is a sly one -- you could be five feet from one and not know it. If you are lucky enough to spot one, get a good look. This is a unique and beautiful member of the egret family. Not surprisingly, this bird's secretive nature has limited our ability to understand some of its habits. But we do know that it is on the move in the spring. While the bulk of the California population is heading out to more northern states and Canada, we do have a year-round population in the northwest regions of the state that will be swaying put. Or at least we think so -- they're so hard to find. Anyway, when we looked at the eBird maps from last year, we saw that the American Bittern was still being spotted a great deal around California well into March, then reducing in May, and by August its numbers in California had largely diminished.