Rediscovery of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker

[hondatrx100]

these trees here n missouri has never been logged out on the st francis river the ivory bill is here every time i play the sound of the ivory off my phone the pileated wood pecker comes a running i alway thought that sound n the woods was a frog but here n the winter there is no frogs out hes here i just need a good camra to get this pair on video there here n missouri for sure i seen male and female on the same tree

[uphamtimothy]

James Tanner had archives of newsreels and photographs of ivory-billed woodpeckers. Hopefully, this bottomland owned by the Nature Conservancy in Arkansas, has rich stands of sweet gum, red maple, and nuttal oak, because they need the dying and dead trees of them in order to survive. If the ivory-billed came back from extinction, do not perform the mistake the first time, and log them all down. There has been sightings in Florida, so keep alive those bottomlands!

[hondatrx100]

the pileated wood pecker is a danger to the ivory bill if u record this sound of the ivory bill and play it n the woods u will make the pileated realy mad this bird will run off the ivory bill the cherping sound i heard was right n front of me out a little bit when i played the recording the pileated come fly to me and didnt here any more sound

[hondatrx100]

2 pair of ivory bills n this area n missouri i seen male and female here the female tried to jump of the tree but here there alot of bushes so when she jump to fly off as i floated down she hit a limb and ended up n the water the male with the red on the back side of his head went west the female with the black head flapped her wings back to the tree and got a foot grip and flow off i thought they were ducks but no there were ivory bills i new they were here

[hondatrx100]

i went out yesterday here n missouri and yes the ivory bill does live here i got some sounds just like the 1 n this video the ivory bill stared calling right at dark so ya we have a pair of ivory billed wood pecker here n missouri ive seen them now ive heard there sound they r here n mo

[hondatrx100]

ive seen the ivory bill NOT the pileated wood pecker i now no the differance now and yes the birds does live here n missouri for real this bird is very shy and will set on a tree right about the boarder line on the water and on the east or west side of the tree because moss gross on the north side the ivier billed wood pecker will set border line right at the moss line on the east or west side to hide his white feathers real close to the water you wont hardly see the female male n this video

[hondatrx100]

never been logged out sorry sence 1935

[hondatrx100]

the ivory billed wood pecker is for real ive seen this bird n missouri on the st frances river in the bootheel theses trees here the bootheel has been logged out sence 1935 and ive just learned from some elderly poeple that back in 1935 to 1960s they was destroying there foresest and the men was shooting this bird for food and the women was useing there white feathers to put in there strall hats like what u would see in the show titantic but ive bben looking for the bird and yes they live here.

[luisg13571]

one thing everyone should know if the magnifecent ivory-billed woodpecker is still alive today it would be found in quite small populations in the Oriental part of Cuba in la Sierra Maestra mostly since the most positive area where behavior of this bird has been found

[droitwichblue]

I'm a UK birder and have most North American species on my list. I have had Tanners book for years and wondered if I could

When this story broke I wept with joy, was this a wonderful story of species ability to survive despite our (some) humans best attempts to destroy this planet. Sadly it now looks like these guys made a honorable mistake, with no further proof (June 2011). I hope the protection and regeneration of the great American forests of the south is at least a long lasting lagacy.

[drudger6666]

Nearing the end of another breeding season for woodpeckers and still no real evidence.

[AKArainkit]

I'm glade they rediscovered the bird. Now, if government gets there heads out of there butts, maybe we can save them!

[muzasbar]

I think and im sure that, if a ibwo population or individual survived until now from the extintion, it will have a nasty and hard future.... there's not a suitable habitat anymore, and remember, this birds requires (required) a big extention of priste habitat to feed thenselves and its offsprings.... my conclution: less than 20 birds will survive now, and the habitat charge will support only 30-50 birds, no more

[thisisexile66]

I think the evidence is convincing. It's better than no evidence. It's perfectly rational to assume that this animal is still alive. Extremely rare and in specialist environments, but still there. I don't undertstand the skeptics who are so quick to definitively say that this bird is extinct. Give nature the benefit of the doubt. If anything, nature is stubborn and resourceful. And as for the bird's continued existence, we should live and let live.

[mikefarrelljr67]

I saw.... White on the upper wing lower segment, if anyone didnt see it there blind.....a good thing to see.

[texasgirly1979]

i saw his bird - wow, i had no idea this is bird was so rare

Ivory-billed Woodpecker was in my back yard few days ago!!! got it on my video

[Mantisman630]

@texasgirly1979 They are pileated woodpeckers, not ivory bills.

[Duckeieio]

SORRY FOLKS Your woodpecker is DEAD. No evidence of live Ivorybilled wood pecker has been found since Jim Tanner saw them in the 40's. No dna, feathers, video, nest holes, or woodpecker poop. Every one of these blowhards is so mistaken they are not worth there tenure or they are knowingly perpetrating a hoax. Credability is everything in the world of science when the world finds out you are bullshit it dose more harm than good.

[Flyers20Fan]

@Duckeieio false, knowing doesnt matter. Knowing if something exists is irrelevant, it wil continue to exist or not exist regardless

[dltanner99]

Cryptozoology novel about two boys who find something strange on the beach one night  see video book trailer

[cjoey39]

I love the Ivory Billed and I think it is a GREAT bird!!! I really hope that someday we will have Ivory Billed Woodpeckers Everywhere!!! KEEP YOUR HOPES UP TO FIND THEM!!! GO IVORY BILLS!!!

[drudger6666]

Another breeding season is upon us. Will the bird be found this year?

[amerbfr]

I also thought to myself, "That bird is a spaz the way he jerks around so much". I remember it like yesterday... Guess I was just too young to realize that I was looking at an Ivory-Billed WP... But Thinking back... I know it was, but like so many others... No proof... I would think that by now they are instinct for sure unless they are cross breeding (not sure if that is possible for them). But I like to think that one day they will be rediscovered... That would be very cool!

[amerbfr]

I grew up in Jacksonville Florida in the woods along the St. Johns River. Every year we had a breeding pair of Pileateds that would show up for a couple of months with a young offspring hanging around... This happened for many years... one year there were 2 pairs that showed up, but to me something was not quite right with one of the birds... I could not put my finger on it at the time but I thought to myself, "that one bird has a lot mor white on it and is much bigger".

[dltanner99]

The Dare Island Enigma is a cryptozoology novel about two boys who find something strange on the beach one night see video book trailer

[colmwn]

As a student of ornithology, I believe very much that the rediscovery is in fact true and the Ivory-billed is not extinct. I would endorse the Lunneau video as true as well, showing an Ivory-bill.

[drudger6666]

@colmwn

Have you seen the documentary Ghost Bird? Very interesting stuff.

[colmwn]

@drudger6666 No, I have not yet. I went in the summer of 08 to the Big Woods Region of Arkansas looking for an Ivory-bill, though. It was very interesting to see the natural areas down there.

[drudger6666]

@colmwn

I too am a student in ornithology. However I do not believe there is convincing evidence that this taxon was rediscovered. I think the lack of verifiable evidence despite 5+ years of intensive searching supports my opinion. I would be interested in your perspective of the Ghost Bird documentary. It is now available for purchase. I hope you get a chance to check it out.

Cheers

[muzasbar]

its like the bachman's warbler... where the f''k are the ivorys!!???????

[sonicwindpipe]

I am travelling to Louisiana and the Breau Bridge area, i am going into the swamps to hopefully see or hear the IBW, where is the best place to look?

[mx568]

@sonicwindpipe  sadly ....only in your dreams.

[dojodan]

They should just clone it! Then release the cloned birds into the protected habitat.

[philipatoz]

I'd love for this bird to exist, but I think the "eyewitnesses" are sincere, but mistaken, in what they THINK they saw. Perhaps I'm wrong - hope I am. One thing is certain: I would have been absolutely embarrassed to put together such a big dog-and-pony show - as Cornell did - particularly by making its evidential centerpiece the woefully short, distant and fuzzy video footage they used. I mean, this footage is like something off of MonsterQuest - and with similar results - "ya got NOTHING!"

[drudger6666]

@philipatoz

You are completely correct. I too think the whole Cornell "show" was embarrassing. My friends in that department try no to even mention Ivory-Billed at work or in front of Fitzpatrick. Still it would be wonderful if this awesome bird was still around but I am afraid it is gone for good. So it it would be wise for effort to be concentrated on those species that are rapidly dwindling and not chasing a ghost.

[philipatoz]

@drudger6666 - yep, I'm sure someone will find a Bigfoot before the Ivory-Billed - it's that far-fetched. And I'm not very savvy as to how research grants and funding are acquired, but this whole thing looks cooked up to bring in some money. I happened across an old newspaper that reported the "re-discovered" Ivory Bill as if it had been established fact. I live near Congaree Swamp in SC - you'd be surprised how many people down here say they've seen this bird in the Congaree.

[drudger6666]

@philipatoz

I think their initial motives were pure. Rather I think they got caught up in the publicity, the attention and fanfare that followed. Unfortunately the Cornell crew did not practice good science and for the most part disregarded the skeptics. During this talk the skeptics were only casually mentioned. In a sense a great teaching opportunity was missed, in that Dr. Fitzpatrick should have thanked the skeptics for doing what they should do, challenging the sparse evidence.

[Faelsun]

I swear to this day I saw one in Attala County Mississippi 24 years ago, people said I was seeing crap but I have seen Pileateds many times.

[marginallymental]

The passenger pidgen--the thylacine--the ivorybill---all these recent extinctions create an intense need to rediscover the animal that I find ineffably poignant---we NEED to find these creatures again because we so desperately want a second chance. I don't know if the Ivorybill is back or not, but I feel for the people who think it is. There are no emotions so keen or cruel as regret and remorse.

[jgreeter]

My father worked for a state DNR for over 20 years, and is now a park ranger at a national park. He saw an ivory billed woodpecker land less than 20 feet away from him on a log, along with another person who was with him who witnessed the event at the same time. One can only hope they will breed and there will be more.

[bosnakedisniksic]

are u sure it wasn't a Pileated Woodpecker. Both birds look similar but the ivory is larger and it has white on the lower half of its wings and the white is visible when the wings are folded but the pileated has white on the upper white of its wings and the white is not visible when the wings are folded. I dont mean to upset u or anyone because i really wish for this bird to be alive and plentiful but there are so many false alarms due to misidentification

[drudger6666]

@jgreeter

When did he see this bird? What year?

[champion8312]

lol the guy looks like he is getting a blow job ahahahhah cause he was about to say slut

[CalxP]

aww its sad that their extinct

[wattever333]

Could it be an imperial woodpecker? With global warming, some species are moving north.

[lokee901]

Someone said they estimate 3 IBW's are alive today. That it true. actually 2 are alive and 1 had just been found in the ear of a president on mount rushmore. wikipedia it

[forzacatainapalermo]

thats bullshit...no concrete evidence has been shown to say they still exist...whereever u read that is not true and is just hear say...wen sumone actually displays moleculua evidence that this thing exists...then ill believe so...in that time, i believe they dont exist

[bosnakedisniksic]

wikipedia is the worst source anyone can use didnt u learn that in middle and high school. Everyone can edit that cite so it says wat they want it to say

[Jacksonjr04581]

Don't tell me it's extinct when i've heard one! :)

[Jacksonjr04581]

I have heard for sure just 1. But based on pros. sightings I estimate at least 3 exist.

[bosnakedisniksic]

if only three really do exist then they are doomed because three can not populate the states again do to inbreeding u need a lot more for the species to survive

[Jacksonjr04581]

If every ornithologist thinks it's extinct, I guess conservation plans would not be dictated by Cornell ornithology lab.

[drudger6666]

@Jacksonjr04581

Hey Jackson how is it going? Any conclusive photos yet? A feather perhaps?

Dan

[Jacksonjr04581]

@drudger6666 I did get an inconclusive photo. I have a tape of a few single and one double knock, have not check the tape just yet to see if they picked up though.

[Jacksonjr04581]

My goal is to count the population of IBWs.

[drudger6666]

how many do you think you have heard

[drudger6666]

Well good luck Jackson. Hope you get a good look at one someday and maybe an excellent photo that will convince me and all the other skeptics (and taxpayers) that this awesome beast is still extant.

Dan

[tinman842]

@drudger6666 i saw this bird when i was tenyrs old thirty. years ago.. in bristow oklahoma... so i know for a fact they were at least alive thirty years ago.. we had 300 acre farm. i hunted it everyday in the summer and weekends with my bbgun..

[drudger6666]

@tinman842

Not likely as the distribution was already extremely restricted by the 1920's. No documented records of the bird existed for OK after 1900. You were hunting Pileated's.

[Jacksonjr04581]

I have been meaning to call cornell to tell them to put up an ARU out where I heard the bird.

[Jacksonjr04581]

It's in "Grail Bird." The one major scientist skeptic that did not conform was J. Jackson.

[drudger6666]

How do you define "major" scientist. Because I go to the ornithology meetings every year and most everyone there just rolls there eyes when IBWs come up.

[Jacksonjr04581]

I'm looking myself. I don't care for the money, that's not my motivation.

[drudger6666]

Never implied it was your motivation...but if you are finding the bird you could help the search team.

And still you have not named the 2 converted skeptics

[Jacksonjr04581]

Well see, jerk.

[drudger6666]

you never named the 2 skeptic converts...

[drudger6666]

Why have you not emailed the crack Cornell team and taken them to this place where you keep hearing all the kent calls? It looks like they need some help finding this elusive beast. You could make some money I am sure.

[Jacksonjr04581]

If you're going to be a jerk about it, then screw you!

[drudger6666]

kisses..

and copy this so you can post it for me next year

"another year gone by and still no proof"

[Jacksonjr04581]

I have heard the Ivory Bill myself. If anyone, YOU don't know what you're talking about.

[drudger6666]

Okeedokee have another sip o moon shine.

[Jacksonjr04581]

If you don't believe it, whatever. The evidence is right there. Go to cornell's website and see the video study points and recording research.

[drudger6666]

I have never had a bird die in a mist net. So you are saying that is the reason the teams have never tried to mist net? Dude I am beginning to get the idea that you have no idea what you are talking about at all.

As I said this time next year I will still be asking you were the verifiable proof is...

[Jacksonjr04581]

Birds go into shock very easy, a mist net risks killing the bird.

[drudger6666]

So how did you do Jackson?

[Jacksonjr04581]

One of the men did get a video, the one in this video! It has been looked over by wingbeats, size, scale, and white on the wings confirm it is an Ivory Billed Woodpecker.

[drudger6666]

NOT EVERYONE AGREES

IVORY-BILLED WOODPECKER (CAMPEPHILUS PRINCIPALIS): HOPE, AND THE INTERFACES OF SCIENCE, CONSERVATION, AND POLITICS

Jerome A. Jackson ***Another expert but I am sure his opinion means nothing to you*****

[Jacksonjr04581]

Most of the sightings were short, but long enough to confirm what it was they saw. In one case, a man heard double raps and turned the recorder on, but forgot the microphone on switch.

[drudger6666]

you would think they would use playback to get a territorial response. That is how ornithologists would try to get them to come to a camera or hell better yet fly into a fricken mist net..then hold the thing for 10 minutes and film the fuck out the thing...then case closed. But all those man hours by all those experts have still only produced one fuzzy video and questionable recordings yes yes I know all those Kent calls. I am getting bored...

[Jacksonjr04581]

People and experts who had sightings include, but not limited to:

Bobby Harrison:prof.

Tim Gallahger:Cornell

Gene Sparling:first sighting.

[6400az]

Yes, and these are credible people I'm sure. But now THAT raises an even bigger question, if not more doubt.

Why did'nt they have a camera with them to support their claim. If anything, these porffessionals HAVE to know how important it is for the public to have the proof.

[Jacksonjr04581]

2 out of 3 of the biggest scientist skeptics now believe it still lives based on "kent" call recordings.

[drudger6666]

and they are?.....

[drudger6666]

are you going to name them or not?

[drudger6666]

sorry correction

David Sibley.

Confusing him with his father

[drudger6666]

"I have been skeptical of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker reports since about two weeks after the announcement in April 2005. This view has only become stronger over time and is based on my thorough study of the published evidence, drawing on my 35 years of experience as a birdwatcher and student of bird identification, and on my experience reviewing countless similar rare bird reports."

Charles Sibley

from his blog check it out

[Jacksonjr04581]

Drudger, last weekend I went down to the Big Woods of Arkansas, where they were found, and herad 2 undeniable "kent" calls. I'm going back this weekend to look again.

[drudger6666]

Great look forward to some nice video or photos, maybe a fresh feather that you will send to a natural history museum.

[drudger6666]

Really excited about the verifiable evidence you will soon provide.

[Jacksonjr04581]

Yeah, they only got a video and kent call recordings, and double rap recordings, but no evidence, eh?

[Jacksonjr04581]

Everyone. Trust me, it's there!

[drudger6666]

Yeah trusting you is how science works.

Another season has gone by and still we wait for undeniable evidence.

[drudger6666]

Hey Jackson bet this time next year I will be able to repeat "another season has gone by and still nothing"

[6400az]

The first video that came out, the one wev'e all seen. It appears to be an Ivory Billed more so than a Pileated. There is just too much white on the wings.

Wanted to make two points;

** What about the Ivory Bills supposedly sighted in Cuba's Sierra Maestra back in 1987. Why haven't we ever heard as much as a word about those??

** What are the chances that they have in fact found the birds, but are keeping it a secret for fear an influx of birders may disturb them ( in Cuba or anywhere ).

[mickbrock]

Here's the pdroblem:

If the bird had been found, and they let the public know, how do they protect it and it's habitat from a.) too many birders upsetting the habitat, and b.) poachers?

If the bird has not yet been found, how can they convince anyone to protect the habitat?

[6400az]

Yes, precisely. I suspect something along those lines. It's a catch 22 of sorts.If it has been found.Then they absolutely have to put a picture or a video of it, somewhere somehow. You don't have to say where the location is.

[mickbrock]

True!

They can share a photo or some footage w/ the public, and in the mean time, secure the habitat.

[6400az]

Exactly. I am one that has been thoroughly dissapointed that no picture has surfaced.

I think it may be counter productive in conservation efforts.

[drudger6666]

There are no pictures or conclusive video because they do not have any.

[6400az]

Youre probably right.

[drudger6666]

Probably but I really hope that I am wrong. It would be awesome to have this great species back.

[hubhunts]

I know that this is true because I have had three sightings in West Alabama.

[CloudPrincezz]

Great lecture

[drudger6666]

"I will see it when I believe it" In other words I want to believe it still exist, I am convinced it does exist so when I see something I turn it into an Ivory-billed.

[Moonstars434]

Loved this lecture.

[drudger6666]

years later they still do not have convincing evidence. John Fitzpatrick jumped the gun on this one and was not very professional in his dealing with skeptics. Shameful.

[FreeThinkersProject]

I don't think you watched the full video.  There is convincing evidence.

[drudger6666]

I have watched the video, dozens of times in fact. I would not call a blurry image convincing evidence but apparently you do. The simple fact is that after thousands (and several years) of man hours by trained observers no additional irrefutable evidence has been provided by Cornell or the Florida crew.

[FreeThinkersProject]

Your comment confirms that you did not watch the full video. There is clear video of an ivory billed taken recently.

[drudger6666]

I was in the audience!

[drudger6666]

What time is this 'new' video?

[drudger6666]

If you are referring to the Luneau video you are an idiot-thats the blurry video that I (and everyone else) is talking about and the whole reason this crap got started. You should change your name to NonThinkersProject.

[mqchinimq]

its pileated not pilleated

[scarycannibaltrout]

The two hunters in the beginning. the ones that drew what they saw. The wing patches were those of the Pipeated not Ivorybill. Ivorybill had white on its primaries.

The film that hey showed later looked more convincing though. The grail bird lives on. The eastern US has been raped so that it surprisesme that any rare speciese sitll persists there.

[chetansingh2006]

Hello Bird watching Friends in America

I hope they discover this magnificent Birds of the swamps of Arkansas.

I live in the Himalayas and here we have numerous Woodpeckers some of them in my video

[deweypug]

This is not soley about rediscovery of the IBWO - it is about getting people involved and increasing the awareness of habitat preservation in areas that may support a population or individuals.

[garybletsch]

It is, of course, impossible to prove the non-existence of something. The IBWO is indeed probably extinct--but it would not be the first time science rediscovered a species thought extinct. Jerdon's Courser was thought extinct for over a hundred years, until its rediscovery in the mid-1980's. The Coelecanth is another example. Patient search may be rewarded.

[emraldYE]

@garybletsch THEY ARE NOT EXTINCT!

[carpbrain]

The Ivory-billed Woodpecker is extinct. I have been waiting for years for Cornell to retract their claim of a "rediscovery".

Birds that exist can be observed repeatedly and photographed.

[bhoeflein]

The ecosystem needed to sustain a population of Ivory-billed woodpeckers no longer exists nor does the bird itself. Please use your vast resources for the truth, not hope or fiction. Move on and save what actually exists. Don't dream so hard, it's not science...

[saltwaterebel]

have you ever been to the ace basin in south carolina? that eco system IS in place my friend. 400,000 acres of prstine bottomland stands of hardwood.

[bhoeflein]

I have been to the ace basin reserve on several occasions and it is hardly pristine. First and foremost, it is less than 140,000 acres of designated wetland/estuary sites that have not only homes and farmland situated on it but a tonne of f'n roads. That is not the crucial part though, there has not been one reputable siting of an IBWP anywhere near the damn reserve. Are you to have me believe that because there is wood atop earth then there must be feathered (extinct) animals as well.

[bhoeflein]

Did you even look at the video proof that claims evidence of this long gone bird. Look at the wing patterns as it flies away. An amateur could tell you it was a Pileated. White (yes the color) look for it.

[andysj531]

@bhoeflein That's not at all true. It's not conclusive evidence at all, but you definitely can't "easily" ID it as pileated; Sibley said it was unidentifiable, as did dozens of others. So, unless you think you are a better field birder than all of these world experts who analyzed the video extremely thoroughly, you might want to reconsider.

[SKOSHI7]

@bhoeflein We had a family of ivory billed woodpeckers living in our backyard in Hinesville Ga back in the 80s we went through the pileated woodpecker douchebags untill a birder friend of the family actually had it verified it was an amazing bird about 20 inches from head to tail and hard to miss. im glad they found more

[SKOSHI7]

@bhoeflein I think the way they identified it was by its call but it was a loooong time ago

[asipesjr]

@bhoeflein As the bird flies away, I see a preponderance of white on the trailing ventral edge of the wings, and a "paleness" on the bird's dorsum. These features match the description of the ivory-billed. The presence or absence of white isn' t as important as its location and pattern on the plumage. The apparent distribution of white on the bird in flight more closely resembles the known patterns of ivory-billed plumage.

[drudger6666]

Ditto!!!! The problem was it was their chance to get a lot of attention and money. It is embarrassing for all of us that are ornithologist and/or scientists.