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 (Wikipedia) Watercolor painting of Ivory Billed Woodpeckers. 1826, Birds of America, by John James Audubon
Ivory-Billed Woodpecker: Still Alive?
JUNE 10, 2009John Roach, MSNBCBirders are a dedicated lot – rising at dawn to catch a glimpse of their feathered friends, traveling hundreds of miles to follow up on sightings reported in online discussion groups, and willing to stand still and silent for hours on end in hopes that their target du jour will flutter into view. Cornell University birder Nathan Banfield, shown here, patiently looks for signs of the ivory-billed woodpecker in an Arkansas swamp forest, following up on a reported sighting in 2004.Ornithologists have been atwitter ever since amateur birder Gene Sparling sighted an ivory-billed woodpecker while kayaking in Arkansas's Cache River National Wildlife Refuge in 2004. That marked the first sighting of the black-and-white bird, shown here in an artist's rendering, since 1944.The surprise 2004 sighting raised the specter that the birds with a distinctive double-rap sound are knocking out a living in the swampy forests of the southeastern United States. Scientists armed with digital video cameras, audio recording devices, GPS tracking equipment and loads of patience have flooded likely haunts in Arkansas and Florida ever since. They’ve found pecked trees and have heard the distinctive call, but a convincing photograph remains elusive.
© 2008 msnbc.com
Reproduced with permission of MSNBC, from A nestful of amazing bird sightings by John Roach; permission conveyed through Copyright Clearance Center, Inc.
You can read this story in its original location and view more bird photos at: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31108698/?pg=2#Tech_BirdSightings
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