In Western Australia, BirdLife Australia and the Department of Parks and Wildlife are working together to protect the Australasian Bittern (Botaurus poiciloptilus). The Australasian Bittern is found in freshwater wetlands with large beds of rushes or sedges.

There has been a rapid loss of suitable natural habitat in WA for the Australasian Bittern over the past 30 years. It is estimated that the species has declined by 25% to 50% in WA since the 1980s, with fewer than 150 individuals now present. The Australasian Bittern is listed as endangered under the EPBC Act (1999) in Australia and globally in the IUCN Red List.

More information on BirdLife Australia’s bittern project can be found on the website birdlife.org.au/projects/bittern-project. Thanks to Lotterywest and the South Coast NRM for funding the WA Australasian Bittern Project in previous years. The project currently is only funded from calendar sales, the WA Twitchathon, donations and is run by volunteers.

NB: when donating be sure to mention your Twitchathon team name and that you are donating for WA Twitchathon!