This dramatic and unusual vocalization is often heard at dusk or dawn and can carry long distances. Download American Bittern sounds ... 6 stock sound clips starting at $2. Scientific Name: Ixobrychus sinensis Malay Name: Gelam Kuning Chinese Name: 黄苇鳽 Range: Found from the Indian subcontinent to China, Siberia, Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia with the northern populations wintering south to Southeast Asia. “[The American Bittern song] has been described as the sound of someone taking an old crank pump and getting water out,” says Dr. Frederic Reid, the director of conservation programs at Ducks Unlimited, describing the American Bittern call as sounding like the three words “pump-er-lunk.” A secretive bird, very difficult to see, as it moves silently through reeds at water's edge, looking for fish. It flies on broad, rounded, bowed wings. [American Bittern “oonk-a-loonk” calls, repeated] You’re listening to one of the most peculiar and memorable of all North American bird voices. You can listen to the bittern's call by clicking below: Bittern … Colloquial names for the species include “thunder-pumper” and “mire-drum” because of its deep and booming call. The American bittern (Botaurus lentiginosus) is a species of wading bird in the heron family. The call is often described as sounding like a water pump. Even the bird’s resonant oonk-a-lunk song, sometimes compared to the sound of a stake being driven into the mud with a mallet, blends into the bullfrog chorus.

The second bittern project, from 2002–2006, was developing a wider network of reedbeds suitable for breeding or wintering bitterns. Download and buy high quality American Bittern sound effects. See more. It has a Nearctic distribution, breeding in Canada and the northern and central parts of the United States, and wintering in the U.S. Gulf Coast states, all of Florida into the Everglades, the Caribbean islands and parts of Central America. The males make a remarkable far-carrying, booming sound in spring. The bittern is a thickset heron with all-over bright, pale, buffy-brown plumage covered with dark streaks and bars. By 2004, bittern numbers had increased at 10 of the 13 project sites.

The bizarre call of the American Bittern is the easiest way to locate this hard-to-find bird. This bird’s deep, resonant calls have earned it nicknames like the “thunder-pumper” and the “stake-driver.” [American Bittern “oonk-a-loonk” calls, repeated] It’s an American Bittern.

The American bittern’s call is distinctive, and similar to the sound of an old wooden water pump. Hear the rare bittern's impressive boom this spring as the males advertise their presence.