Ivory-billed Woodpecker Discovered in the Big Woods of Arkansas
A Ghost from the Old South
More than 60 years after the last confirmed sighting of an ivory-billed woodpecker in the United States, researchers have evidence that the majestic bird still lives. On February 11, 2004, a kayaker caught a glimpse of a huge and unusual woodpecker in the Cache River National Wildlife Refuge of Arkansas. The encounter spurred an extensive scientific search for a species that many feared had vanished forever, driven to extinction by the destruction of southern old-growth forests.
Fleeting Glimpses of a Magnificent Bird
Ivory-billed Woodpecker
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology and The Nature Conservancy led the Big Woods Conservation Partnership in a year-long search for the elusive woodpecker. The team reported multiple fleeting views of the bird, a frame-by-frame analysis of two seconds of video footage, and possible recordings of the woodpecker’s distinctive double knock. This evidence has convinced many that at least one ivory-billed woodpecker survives in the Big Woods of Arkansas’ Mississippi River Delta.
“The idea that there is enough habitat left for a species that elusive and that romantic to still survive in Arkansas is completely grand!”
Nancy DeLamar
regional external affairs director for The Nature Conservancy’s Southern U.S. conservation area
“The bird captured on video is clearly an ivory-billed woodpecker,” said John Fitzpatrick, director of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and leader of the project’s research team. “Amazingly, America may have another chance to protect the future of the ivory-billed woodpecker and the awesome forests where it lives.”
Hope for the Future
“Finding the ivory-bill in Arkansas validates decades of great conservation work and represents incredible hope for the future,” said Scott Simon, director of The Nature Conservancy's Arkansas chapter. “For over 20 years, many agencies, conservation organizations, hunters, and landowners have worked to conserve and restore the bottomland hardwood and swamp ecosystem. Now we know we must work even harder to conserve this critical habitat—not just for the ivory-billed woodpecker, but for the black bears and many other rare species of these unique woods.”
Since the search began, The Nature Conservancy has protected more than 18,000 acres of the Big Woods near the Cache River and White River national wildlife refuges through new land acquisitions. The 10-year goal is to restore 200,000 more acres of the Big Woods.
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