Experts Suggest Extinct Ivory-Billed Woodpecker Still Populate Remote Forests

Even though the last confirmed sighting of the ivory-billed woodpecker was in 1944, ornithologists believe the bird may still exist in isolated hardwood forests in the Southeast of the United States. Its enormous size gave it the heavenly-sounding moniker "Lord God bird."

After ornithologists, including Geoffrey Hill of Auburn University, said there is convincing evidence that the elusive "ghost bird" is still alive, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decided against proposing to declare the bird extinct last year and instead announced a six-month extension to gather more data.

The Wildlife Service announced the extension and stated that it was doing so in order to give more time to review the data due to the significant disagreement among experts regarding the status of the species.

In 2005 and 2006, Hill and a group of students conducted research in Florida's Choctawhatchee River basin and gathered "really strong evidence" that ivory-billed woodpeckers were still alive. Hill rose to fame for his work examining unusual bird colorations like Alabama's yellow cardinal.

Hill and others who claim to have personally witnessed the ivory-billed woodpecker still lack the conclusive photo or video evidence to demonstrate that the bird is still present.

Short of an IMAX Movie

Hill claimed that although they provided very convincing evidence for a Florida population, the IMAX movie that everyone was hoping to see with crystal-clear images of the bird was not available.

Hill claimed that while he and his Auburn students had recorded some sounds and images of the bird, none were conclusive enough to declare the species to be alive.

Hill also discussed the birds' audio recordings and an unclear video of a bird that resembled an ivory-billed woodpecker.

While suggestive evidence has been discovered in several states, the Fish and Wildlife Service noted in 2010 that as of the time of this writing, no clear, conclusive photograph or video had been taken.

Another group of ornithologists reported this year that they had filmed a trail camera and found additional proof of the ivory-continued bill's existence in rural Louisiana.

Although the Louisiana team published their findings in a journal pre-print in April, a crucial step in validating their findings, formal peer review by other experts has not yet taken place.

Ivory-Billed Woodpecker

With wingspans up to 31 inches, the ivory-billed woodpecker is the largest woodpecker known to exist in the United States. The bird is distinguished by its eye-catching black-and-white pattern, white bill, and lemon-yellow eyes. The female's crest is black, while the male's is vivid red.

The majestic woodpecker was once widespread in the Southeast, including Alabama, but beginning in the early 1800s, hunting and habitat loss drove the bird nearly or possibly completely extinct.

According to Hill, it was a fairly common bird until about the middle of the 19th century, following the Civil War. Around that time, logging in the swamps of the Southeast became more feasible thanks to technological advancements, and in the decades that followed the Civil War, a large population hunted woodpeckers for food, this included the ivory-billed woodpecker species.

Northern Louisiana was the location of the last confirmed live ivory-bill sighting in 1944.

The bird forages for insects among the dead and decaying wood from fallen trees in large, continuous forest lands, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service's species recovery plan. Large, untouched areas of forest land are becoming harder to find.

According to Hill, if the sightings are ivory-bills, researchers do not currently have enough data to determine whether the bird is making a comeback or is simply hanging on in a few places.

No recent evidence of the ivory-bill has been found in Alabama, according to Hill, but areas of the Mobile-Tensaw Delta may be an ideal habitat if the bird were to make a comeback.