Bitterns are a classification of birds in the heron family, Ardeidae, a family of wading birds. Species named bitterns tend to be the shorter-necked, often more secretive members of this family. They were called hæferblæte in Old English; the word "bittern" came to English from Old French butor, itself from Gallo-roman butitaurus, a portmanteau of Latin būtiō and taurus.
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bittern A bird of the family Ardeidae that lives in marshy areas, feeds on amphibians, reptiles, insects and fish and flies with its neck retracted rather than outstretched.
