Surfbirds News

The last accepted sightings of Ivory-billed Woodpecker were in Cuba in 1987 and 1988; and the last fully documented US sighting occurred in Louisiana in 1944. While there have been a number of reports of possible Ivory-billed Woodpecker sightings since then, none have been confirmed prior to today's announcement. (1,2,3,4)

A series of sightings between February 2004 and April 2005, in the Big Woods forest of the Mississippi River basin, involved at least one bird, a male. More may be present, since only a fraction of the available habitat has been surveyed. "Potential habitat for a thinly distributed source population is vast at over 220,000 hectares," the Science paper's authors state.

"All of us who share this planet owe an enormous debt of gratitude to the individuals and organizations whose tireless efforts led to the rediscovery of this bird," said John Flicker, President of the National
Audubon Society. "Thanks to their dedication, we all have a second chance to save this magnificent woodpecker from extinction. As it inspires our hopes, this resilient Ivory-billed Woodpecker must also
inspire our commitment to protect the habitat it needs for survival."

"This extraordinary rediscovery provides hope for the 18 species classified as Potentially Extinct, such as Jamaican Petrel, Javan Lapwing and Pink-headed Duck," said Dr Michael Rands, Director and Chief Executive of BirdLife International.

A large, approximately 50 cm bird, the Ivory-billed Woodpecker is dependent on old-growth forests of very large trees, such as cypress, for its habitat. Destruction and fragmentation of virgin bottomland forests throughout the southern US, including floodplain forests along the Mississippi River and its tributaries, led to its decline and eventually to its believed extinction. The Ivory-billed Woodpecker is one of six North American bird species confirmed or suspected to have gone extinct since 1880. (5,6)

"The discovery of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker will make this site an Important Bird Area of global significance," said Flicker. Launched in 1981 by BirdLife International, the Important Bird Areas (IBA) program is a global effort to identify and protect critical bird habitat. Audubon fosters the protection of more than 1,800 IBAs coast to coast by engaging individuals, communities, organizations and agencies, in the stewardship, restoration and conservation of Important Bird Areas.

"We must work to protect other remaining tracts of mature contiguous forest through the IBA program. Audubon pledges to work with state, local and federal agencies and other conservation organizations involved with this effort to protect this bird and its habitat."

Audubon and BirdLife International are urging members of the public to ensure the safety of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker by respecting its privacy. Stress from human disturbance poses a threat to its survival.

The Science authors assert that strategic additions to the public refuge system, and successful restoration efforts by public and private landowners, are re-establishing the crucial foraging habitat for Ivory-billed Woodpeckers. "Increasing the extent and diversity of genuinely mature bottomland forest with large, very old trees and substantial standing dead and dying timber may allow future generations
to see the awe-inspiring woodpecker again gracing old-growth treetops."

1) Audubon is celebrating its centennial year of protecting birds and
other wildlife and the habitat that supports them. Its national network
of community-based nature centres and chapters, scientific and
educational programs, and advocacy on behalf of areas sustaining
important bird populations, engage millions of people of all ages and
backgrounds in positive conservation experiences.
2) Birdlife International is a global alliance of conservation
organisations working in more than 100 countries who, together, are the
leading authority on the status of birds, their habitats and the issues
and problems affecting bird life. BirdLife is the Red Listing Authority
for birds for the IUCN Red List which includes all species judged to be
threatened with extinction. IUCN Red List categories are: Critically
Endangered (facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild),
Endangered (facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild),
Vulnerable (facing a high risk of extinction in the wild), Near
Threatened (close to qualifying for Vulnerable) and Least Concern
(species not qualifying for the other categories, including widespread
and abundant species). "Potentially Extinct" are species that are, on
the balance of evidence, likely to be extinct, but for which there is a
small chance that they may still be extant and hence they should not be
listed as Extinct until adequate surveys have failed to find the species
and local or unconfirmed reports have been discounted.
4) Ivory-billed Woodpecker (Campephilus principalis) Persists in
Continental North America, Science online 28/04/2005.
5) A resident subspecies of ivory-billed woodpecker (Campephilus
principalis bairdii) occupied tall forests throughout Cuba, and a small
population was mapped and photographed in eastern Cuba as late as 1956.
Fleeting observations of at least two individuals in 1986 and 1987 by
several experts are widely accepted as valid, but repeated efforts to
confirm continued existence of that population have failed.
6) The others are Labrador Duck (Camptorhynchus labradorius), Eskimo
Curlew (Numenius borealis), Carolina Parakeet (Conuropsis carolinensis),
Passenger Pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius), and Bachman's Warbler
(Vermivora bachmanii).