RSS Feeds

Earth Science

Space Science

Life Science

Fields of Scientific Study

Nanotechnology

Cancer

Definitions of The Fields of Scientific Study

A case of mistaken identity for the Ivory-billed Woodpecker?

March 15, 2007

Video evidence that an extinct woodpecker is alive and well in Arkansas, USA may prove to be a case of mistaken identity. Research published today in the open access journal BMC Biology shows how fleeting images thought to be the Ivory-billed Woodpecker Campephilus principalis could be another native woodpecker species.

J. Martin Collinson compared David Luneau's Arkansas video footage from April 2004 of the supposed Ivory-billed Woodpecker with fresh footage of the Pileated Woodpecker Dryocopus pileatus, a superficially similar black and white species. The Pileated Woodpecker's wings were thought to beat more slowly that the 8.6 beats per second captured on Luneau's video, and its wings have black trailing edges. The trailing edges of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker's wings are white.

Aberdeen-based Collinson concludes that Luneau's video shows a bird that is not fully identified, and probably a Pileated Woodpecker. His analysis of the fresh Pileated Woodpecker video footage showed that its wings did reach 8.6 beats per second during an escape flight. He also found that as Pileated Woodpeckers fly away from the camera, their plumage is hard to distinguish from the Ivory-billed Woodpecker's. He suggests that the Pileated Woodpecker's distinctive black trailing wing edges can be spotted in the Luneau video as the wings stroke downwards. Previous analysis suggested these were the black wingtips of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker.

Collinson argues that the Ivory-billed Woodpecker's rediscovery remains unproven: "With no verified reports in the USA for over 50 years, it seemed impossible that a crow-sized black, white and red bird should have eluded the nation's ornithologists, hunters and conservationists in heavily populated South-eastern USA for so long." However, the original video published in Science catalysed conservation efforts in SE USA's bottomland swamp forests, which face continuing development. Furthermore, it spurred renewed efforts, in Florida and elsewhere, to find the Ivory-billed Woodpecker and determine its status in the USA.

BioMed Central

Related Woodpecker Current Events and Woodpecker News Articles

Woodpecker Current Events and Woodpecker News RSS

Climate change affecting Europe's birds now, say researchers
Climate change is already having a detectable impact on birds across Europe, says a Durham University and RSPB-led scientific team publishing their findings to create the world's first indicator of the climate change impacts on wildlife at a continental scale.

Reliance on unverifiable observations hinders successful conservation of wildlife species
Nearly any evidence of the occurrence of a rare or elusive wildlife species has the tendency to generate a stir. Case in point: in February 2008, remote cameras unexpectedly captured the images of a wolverine in the central Sierra Nevada, an area from which the species was believed to be extinct since 1922.

Lemurs' evolutionary history may shed light on our own
After swabbing the cheeks of more than 200 lemurs and related primates to collect their DNA, researchers at the Duke Institute for Genome Sciences & Policy (IGSP) and Duke Lemur Center now have a much clearer picture of their evolutionary family tree.

Food for Flight: Monarch Butterfly Migration and Forest Restoration
USDA Forest Service (FS) research in the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas suggests that decades of fire suppression have reduced the area's food supply for migrating monarch butterflies-and that restoration efforts that include prescribed burning can reverse this trend.

NASA Assists Search for Woodpecker Thought to be Extinct
Unlike its more famous cartoon cousin Woody the Woodpecker, the ivory-billed woodpecker is thought to be extinct, or so most experts have believed for over half a century.

Elvis the mystery bird has searchers scouring Arkansas habitats for signs of roosts, nests or stripped bark
Elvis. That is the nickname that Larry Mallard, refuge manager for the White River National Wildlife Refuge in southeastern Arkansas, uses for the ivory-billed woodpecker (Campephilus principalis), now being sought in Mallard's woods by Cornell Lab of Ornithology staffers and volunteers.

New study pinpoints epicenters of Earth's imminent extinctions
Safeguarding 595 sites around the world would help stave off an imminent global extinction crisis, according to new research published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Independent researchers confirm the existence of ivory-billed woodpecker
After reviewing new sound recordings from the White River of Arkansas, an independent team of ornithologists has confirmed the existence of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker.

Ecological significance of tool-use in the woodpecker finch Cactospiza pallida
The Woodpecker finch, one of 14 Darwin`s finches of the Galapagos Islands, uses twigs or cactus spines to pry insects and spiders out of tree-holes. The advantage of using tools may seem evident, but empirical evidence is scarce. In a paper soon to appear in Ecology Letters, Tebbich and colleagues present the first study on the ecological relevance of tool-use by a bird species. Woodpecker finches hardly use tools in humid areas where food is abundant and easily accessible. In contrast, in arid coastal areas where food is scarce, Woodpecker finches rely almost exclusively on the extraction of food from bark and tree-holes and use tools frequently. They acquire a greater proportion of food

Green Isle Survives In The Urban Environment
Fortunately, green spots still remain on the map of Moscow tending to be located in the suburbs of the city, in the valleys of the rivers, away from the densely populated communities. Among them there are several little spots which are surrounded by the city being isolated like isles in the ocean. One of them is the forest park of the Timiryazev Agricultural Academy, which makes part to the Petrovsko-Razumovskoye natural preserve. Long ago the forest was planted especially for the professional training of forestry specialists Russia is famous for. For this purpose the forest was regularly checked up - from time to time the biologists used to count all the plant and animal species in the fore

More Woodpecker Current Events and Woodpecker News Articles

	Woodpeckers Box Clamp by Woodpeckers, Inc You can never have enough clamps. But then again, having just the right clamp for the job can make a huge difference. The new Woodpecker 4 Box Clamp might just be the perfect clamp for assembling your cabinets, drawers and virtually any other box made from ¼ to 1 thick material even with two pieces of different thickness (up to 1/4 difference). It's unique space-saving design actually gives you more surface area then most similar corner clamps while not having any clumsy, protruding handles or screws. The Box Clamp was designed to take up the least amount of space while offering more, dead-true clamping surface then other comparable clamps. It can be used as part of a clamping fixture for assembly of multiple, identical assemblies or un-fixtured for large cumbersome projects. Most...
	Woodpeckers Story Stick 36" by Woodpeckers Even in today's high tech world of woodworking, some tried and true techniques are still hard to beat. Introducing the new Woodpecker Story Stick. What's a story stick? It's essentially a yardstick customized to your project with just the marks you need. The Woodpecker Story Stick takes this fundamentally useful tool and brings it into the 21 st century. Now you can mark dozens of boards exactly the same. To make it even easier, you won't need your glasses to make an accurate pencil mark, the pencil slots in the steel tabs ensure your marks are dead on. By combining accurately cut steel tabs with an engraved aluminum track and machined stop, you'll have one of the best tools possible for repeatedly and accurately marking where you need to drill a hole, make a cut or install a shelf....
	Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins (Author) Still Life with Woodpecker is sort of a love story that takes place inside a pack of Camel cigarettes. It reveals the purpose of the moon, explains the difference between criminals and outlaws, examines the conflict between social activism and romantic individualism, and paints a portrait of contemporary society that includes powerful Arabs, exiled royalty, and pregnant cheerleaders. It also deals with the problem of redheads.
	Woodpecker Starring: Jon E. Hyrns, Wesley Yang Directed By: Alex Karpovsky It's hard to say who is the stranger creature in this existential trigicomedy - the unusually large and brilliantly feathered Ivory-Billed Woodpecker or Johnny Neander, the amateur poet who has made it his mission to track down the long-thought-extinct bird in the swamps of Eastern Arkansas. Unlike the countless fanatics that descended upon the area after the Ivory-Billed was allegedly spotted, Johnny's search seems to be much more personal and perverse, despite the fact that he really has no idea how to go about it. Woodpecker features an original soundtrack from Colin Greenwood of Radiohead.
	Stokes Select STK8480-12 Woodpecker Suet (12 Cakes) by Stokes Select Larger rendered beef suet cakes, specially formulated for large beak bird species such as woodpeckers. These cakes are made with bits of millet, cracked corn, sunflower seeds and calcium carbonate. Case of 12 individually wrapped cakes, to stay fresh until your birds need them.
	Pileated Woodpecker - Audubon Plush Bird (Authentic Bird Sound) by Wild Republic Pileated Woodpecker Audubon Bird, 5 inches, from Wild Republic. Presenting Audubon? Birds by Wild Republic?, a collection of original realistic plush beanbag birds with authentic sounds. These beanbag marvels are a perfect replica of the original species in the way they look and sound. Each bird's lifelike design and detailing is the result of input from Audubon. In addition, the authentic sound in each bird has been provided by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and represents hours, months and even years of extensive fieldwork conducted by expert recordists. These birds are ideal for collecting by both children and adults. A gentle squeeze is all you need to brighten your day with their natural songs.
	Woodpeckers Complete Drill Press Table by Woodpeckers This drill press table in unlike anything we have ever seen, incorporating better clamping T track, a low friction micro dot laminate top, super durable edge banding and a low price with options to add what you need. One of the nicest features is the .050" thick Micro Dot laminate on the 16" x 23" x 1" thick table top. Micro Dot is a new laminate that has a unique texture, a grid of small circular pockets that allows saw dust to collect and act as little ball bearings, creating reduced friction and allowing your material to easily slide across the table surface. The table is very nice, 36" long fence is laser engraved with a zero center scale, making it very easy to use. Fence adjustments can be done in only seconds with no tools, making it very easy to work with. The table is durably...
	Woody Woodpecker - Late Night Flannel Lounge Pants for men - Large by WebUndies
	The Woody Woodpecker and Friends Classic Cartoon Collection Starring: Mel Blanc Directed By: Walter Lantz, Tex Avery Relive all of the hilarious, crazy adventures of Woody Woodpecker, everyone's favorite wacky red-headed bird, in The Woody Woodpecker and Friends Classic Cartoon Collection! Created by renowned cartoonist Walter Lantz, these 75 original theatrical cartoons - all digitally remastered and completely uncut - showcase some of the wildest antics in animation history. Join Woody and his friends Chilly Willy, Andy Panda, Wally Walrus and Buzz Buzzard in hours of outrageous adventures. Featuring rare treasures from the Walter Lantz archive, including Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Cartune Classic and Swing Symphony cartoons, this side-splitting collection will keep fans laughing out loud time and time again!
	Plush Woodpecker Puppet by Folkmanis Puppets With a "rat-tat-tat" sound chip in its tail, this striking black and white woodpecker looks and sounds alive. Strutting a red head, she's pecking for grubs or to make her nest. Woodpecker puppet has a movable beak and wings and measures 12" tall.