Roy Woodford sent us some spectacular shots of the sometimes reclusive Least Bitterns that he’s taken this summer. Writes Roy:

What I find really rewarding is when I can get pictures of that which is not often seen. One of my favorites in this category is the Least Bittern.  They are very hard to spot (even with binoculars) and are very shy and reclusive … quickly hiding in the phragmites if you get too close.

I’ve found if you’re extremely patient, you can gain their trust (or they just don’t think of me as a threat).  It took weeks to find the tolerant ones and hours each time to get them used to me being there.

The endless hours of searching and waiting (while baking in the sun) were well spent though.  On numerous occasions, the birds would come out and feed, preen, and wander around me … only occasionally actually looking at me.  Most of these shots are from about 20 feet away.