i am not a scientist

We can all agree that the ivory-billed woodpecker is a beautiful being. It represents in a sense the death of beauty. We, as humans, have destroyed its natural habitat, killed this bird for sport, and haven’t done anything to preserve this species, until the last couple of decades. Maybe it is “too little too late”, but from what I have gathered we have done everything to try and bring them back to life. In class we articulated the question of: Does the ivory-billed woodpecker still exist, or is it extinct? We looked at the evidence and it seems like the class has understood it to be a lost cause. I, on the other hand, do not believe that. It says in the case study one that, The Big Woods has 220,000 acres of bottom land forest and 40 percent of the forest is approaching maturity. They also explain that “If a few breeding pairs do exist, most of the conditions believed to be required for successful breeding and population growth are becoming more available to them”. We have the resources, we just need the means. All we have to do now is relocate and help this species survive. I want to believe they exist; I am not a scientist or anything close to it, but we are not doing this in vain. We are doing this to make up for our negligence.

A Natural Beauty

The Ivory- Billed Woodpecker is more than just a bird. It represents life, a chance for a second chance for a beautiful species. It represents the underdog coming out on top, like a flower finding the ability to grow through a crack in the sidewalk. The evidence that has been established in regards to this particular bird are not exactly up to par. Two ordinary men in a boat swear they see it and get a video that looks like a simple blur through trees. The beauty of this bird is that it may roam free where humans are afraid to tread, they are fearless. While we were going through all the recorded "evidence" in class and continuing to read about this particular bird it comes to my attention that this bird thrives or use to thrive are in the depths of forest. This bird lives in the shadows, so in all honesty we really have no idea how many there are. Scientists, or maybe even most people would disagree with that statement but I say let them. What irritates me in a way that we are spending countless millions are trying to tract a bird that purposely wants to be left alone. If we as humans have already caused the destruction of such a species via deforestation, etc. should we not at least leave the possible rebirth of this species alone and let nature take its course?

A Chance to Save Ourselves

The case of the Ivory Billed Woodpecker is both one of hope and of despair. Considering its aesthetic qualities is enough to make one sympathize with the bird. Its impressive three-foot wingspan and beautiful markings must be quite a sight. To quote a cliche, "you don't know what you've got till it's gone." The loss Ivory Billed Woodpecker has been reconsidered, and perhaps this time around, we will be mindful of its vulnerability. It is a reminder that nature can and ill fight back. Nature does have resilience. We must appreciate this strength and respect its weakness. By continuing to destroy habitats around the world, many people do not realize that we are actually destroying our own habitat. Humans often forget that they are animals as well, and at a certain point, this destruction is going to spell our demise as well. Weather this woodpecker is still alive or not, it is a metaphor for the fact that there is still a chance to save nature and it is imperative we take advantage of this closing window of opportunity to save it.

The Ivory-billed Woodpecker and its possible extinction is not just a loss of a species, something that happens everyday. The birds disappearance represents humans lack of concern for anything other than themselves. People have caused the Ivory-billed Woodpecker to have such low numbers or possibly be completely wiped out. If we are able to recover the missing bird then maybe we have a chance to reverse some of the damage that has been done. As minute as a single species, that is not human, may seem, they all play a roll in a nature and are important whether one realizes their significance or not. It is important to respect each and their habitat. Our species has no excuse for the destruction of nature. It is time we finally try to preserve what is left before there is nothing at all. 

For me the case study and the nature conservancy data have come to show without a doubt that the search for the ivory-billed woodpecker is certainly far more important than the bird itself. The hunt for the ivory billed wood pecker has become a sort of commentary on the conservationist movement itself. Can our actions in fact reverse some of the damage we’ve caused? The answer to that remains unknown but perhaps if the wood packer can be found alive we might have some idea. Personally, I would not be surprised if the bird was indeed alive, being such an elusive creature it wouldn’t be entirely surprising if there were in fact one or two lurking around somewhere.

Societal transformation in need

The Ivory-billed woodpecker is an iconic figure that represents the immediate transformation human society needs to take. Like the extinction of most species, the Ivory-bill dwindled into non-existence due solely to human activities: habitat destruction via logging and overutilization by humans. The loss of the Ivory-bill is not only the loss of one species; it is the loss of an aesthetic figure, a figure with “charisma” as Jonathan Rosen exclaims. In other words, its loss is not merely a numerical or statistical figure, it’s the loss of an enchanting, awe-inspiring creature, a category impossible to put a number on. The loss of this magnificent bird is, unfortunately, not an exception. Hundreds of species have gone extinct, and experts predict that by the year 2050 twenty-five percent of all animal and plant species will be threatened by extinction. We as one species, a comparably minute group to the rest of living organisms at that, have dominated the Earth and all its resources. Many people argue, “Why should we care, extinction is a natural process.” Others say, “It’s innate in beings to strive to be on top and dominate, therefore we are doing nothing wrong.” Well yes, extinction is a natural process, but not at this rate and not under these circumstances. And yes, the realm of nature is based on a hierarchical scheme, but humans are different from most other animals. We have the capability to rationalize, and just because we can does not mean we should. The extinction, or near extinction, of the Ivory-billed woodpecker due to anthropogenic effects reflects the responsibility and special care we must take for Earth and its creatures. Yes the Ivory-bill is just one species, but its one species gone forever, erased from the face of the Earth, and we have no right to make consciously make that decision. We must transform as society from exploiters to caretakers.

a symbol of ruthless behavior - and hope!

Jonathan Rosen says that “the Ivory-billed woodpecker has become an emblem of the now vanished American wilderness” (p.66). Even more tragic is that the woodpecker counts as an extinct species due to human behavior (forestation/destruction of the woodpecker’s special habitat) and not as a result of a natural process or a random natural event. If the “Lord God bird” (p.66) is indeed extinct, then men are to blame for it. So the woodpecker is not only an emblem of vanished wilderness but also a symbol of men’s ruthless exposure to nature.
At the same time, the woodpecker presents hope. Hope that the woodpecker is stronger/ more adaptable than expected and could survive somewhere. And thus the woodpecker also presents hope that men cannot destroy everything (but I’m sure we can), that nature is stronger, or at least that the consequences of human behaviour are not that final and irrevocable as they seem to be. The woodpecker presents the wish that men can recoup what has been done in the past by now protecting and reforesting the woodpecker’s habitat. It is the wish that nature “forgives” us our deeds. So there is this longing for “absolution”. However, this is a pious hope. For me, the woodpecker, or rather, what he represents, is indeed “the Grail” (p.68), a longing for something that can hardly be fulfilled or achieved.

Happy Ending?

To end this report on such a happy note only resulted in further confusion to me. It is a pity to learn that the primary cause for the apparent extinction of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker was due to the deforestation of forests in the southeastern United States as well as of the old-growth bottomland hardwood forest in northeastern Louisiana, where the last population of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker was reported to be. The report, however, lacks important information regarding the reasons for the deforestation, which if included, would emphasize to a greater extent, the focal point of the article: the extinction of species due to human disruption of natural habitats. Nevertheless, I would like to acknowledge the efforts that have been made to determine whether the bird that was spotted is actually an Ivory-billed Woodpecker. The careful analysis of each of the bird’s physical characteristics are detailed and reflect the urge to recuperate the species. Yet, as I mentioned earlier, it is odd that the report ended by describing the subtle efforts that have been made to recuperate the hardwood forests. Unfortunately, this may not be enough to save the Ivory-billed Woodpecker species and readers should be left with a sense of alarm rather than comfort.

case study 1

The ivory billed woodpecker was common in parts of the United States until it was last seen in 1944. However in late 2004 a bird was seen that was thought to be an ivory billed woodpecker. Between this first sighting and April 2005 there was a total of seven sighting of this bird one of which was caught on video. Though the bird has been viewed from a distance there are five diagnostic features that indicate this bird is the ivory billed woodpecker. The first feature being the size of the bird is seen in the video captured. The video shows the size of the bird allowing onlookers to compare the wing span the bird has as opposed to the pileated woodpecker. The second and third features involve the bird’s wing pattern when at rest and when in flight. The video and pictures taken are hard to conclude but the pictures are evident of being an ivory billed woodpecker. The last feature is the black and white aspect of the bird. The color pattern of the ivory billed woodpecker is black and white but in a different combination than that of its similar pileated woodpecker relative. Though the evidence is questionable it has been determined by researchers that the bird in discussion is not the pileated woodpecker. More research is being constructed while hope to see the ivory billed woodpecker grow in population continues.

Persists or Impersonates

Although G. Sparling and company believe they saw the ivory-billed woodpecker, there is just not enough proof to convince me. The video footage was grainy, but based on Audubon’s Ivory-billed woodpecker sketch and the images provided within the article, I could make out the large white patches visible on the bird’s wings. The long patches on its wings in the video were definitely larger than that in the images of the pileated woodpecker’s. However, the fine print on page 1461 reveals that “distances and light conditions” induce color bleeding, exaggerating the white coloration of the wings. Even though the video may seem like hard proof, it is just too poorly shot to tell. Having taken place in 2004 and 2005, I do not understand how these observers have not gotten better images of the bird. Modern cameras offer better quality than whatever they were using.

A mystery revealed

It's amazing to think that a species can, in a sense, raise from the dead. The Ivory Billed Woodpecker, although considered extinct, has supposedly existed without human knowledge for quite some time now. I am going to assume that the population of the species has grown since its habitual forests have re-strengthened. Having considered this, it is interesting to see how one’s environment dictates what inhabits it rather than human anthropomorphous attitudes that we dictate what our environment encompasses. Perhaps the woodpecker has adapted to its environment as the forests have been depleted. But if the population is in fact growing, it is the state of its natural environment that has allowed it to raise from the dead. It is a reality check about what the environment could do to humans if we do not treat it with care and consideration. I also wonder what the Ivory Billed Woodpecker’s ecological role is. What is it contributing to the chain of connection in the Southeastern forests? How crucial is it? Not knowing makes me think about what we discussed in class about science as a puzzle. Perhaps knowledge about this species’ role could connect a piece of the puzzle in order to uncover some sort of scientific mystery. Wouldn’t that be romantic for this lone kayaker who had a chance encounter with this elusive bird?

Case Study 1: Ivory-billed Woodpecker

After reading the first paragraph of the "Ivory-billed Woodpecker" case study, I knew, at that exact moment, my blog would be a hysterical rant on anthropogenic habitat destruction. Fortunately, this was not the case. Having read the case study in its entirety along with criticism from www.sciencemag.org, I not only came away astounded by the astute observational and experimental techniques used to distinguish an ivory-billed woodpecker from a pileated one, but how the scientific community is a battlefield of ideas, a place where a scientific theory is always open to falsification if new evidence is presented. For example, Fitzpatrick's claim, based on sound and video recordings, that the ivory-billed woodpecker still existed in North America was strongly criticized by David A. Sibley and Luis R. Bevier. These scientists argued that Fitzpatrick's observations did not provide independently verifiable evidence and his conclusions from digital video and deinterlaced video frames rested on mistaken interpretations of the bird's posture. In short, they believed the bird in the Luneau video was a normal pileated woodpecker. Firing back, Fitzpatrick argued that their claims were based on misrepresentations of a pileated woodpecker's underwing pattern and inaccurate models of takeoff and flight behavior. Also, their claims, he further argued, failed to explain evidence in the Luneau video of white dorsal plumage, distinctive flight behavior, and a perched woodpecker with white upper parts. 

Ivory-Billed Woodpecker

The article then goes into several cases where there "may" have been a sighting but there's never enough evidence to support it. So we have all these people seeing these specific, considered extinct, woodpeckers but never any evidence to back them up. A man canoeing says he sights one. After searching for it within a couple days in the same area it is sighted several times. This seems believable. Then there are more sightings but yet again can not be proved. Well if you ask me how can they go out and find the one the guy in the canoe saw but they cant go out and re-find the ones other people saw? I'd like to believe that there is hope in a new population growth but I guess in this case seeing really is believing.

A Little Ray of Sunshine

For currently being on the extinct list the ivory wood billed woodpecker has been sighted a great deal of times. In most other cases when animals are label extinct they are gone with out hope of any reappearance. This elusive yet apparently alive bird of legend and lore brings enthusiasm and optimism to field scientists and anyone who comes in contact with its story. The article stated that dozens of scientists combed the Big Woods searching for clues. The bird(s) spotted matched the five criteria of identification. Although the process is very empirical it seems something bigger and more magical also is playing a big part in the study. In the concluding paragraph the article reveals that people and nature are working together to provide suitable ranges of forest to nurture the bird.

The case of the Ivory Billed Woodpecker, a favorite case in all my environmental classes, has led me to wonder about the declaration of extinction. Before hearing about this particular confusion, I thought of extinction as the final word, an inarguable death sentence. The Ivory Billed Woodpecker has led me to think about the process of declaring extinction. I can't claim to know anything about said process, but I'm pretty sure it's carried out by humans. This brings up once again that we are a part of our environment, experimenting on our environment, and causing its demise, all at once. When you really think about it, how can we possibly know if such an elusive and mobile creatur, like the Ivory Billed, is really extinct. If some of them aren't, then that would be survival of the fittest, and the fittest would probably have learned by now to avoid humans at all costs. Although I fully and completely support the strict monitoring of species and public announcements about their status, this case, which I'm afraid is not the norm, has reminded me that we are only human, just another species just as capable of going extinct, and we should act as such.

and what now?

The most significant question the article raised for me was: what has happened since? The authors assert that they cannot be sure whether any mating pairs were present, or even whether all sightings were not of a single individual. Seeing as considerable evidence was gathered, I would assume that this case is one that's been followed up with further research. We may be getting to this in a few days, but I wonder most whether researchers continued to attempt to track these birds, especially during mating season, which (if there were in fact mating pairs present) would probably be accompanied by certain rituals or distinctive calls that could offer more concrete evidence (and legitimate hope for continuation of the species). I'd like to see the results of this, as well as the ultimate outcome to date, if information is available, to know whether people's attempts at habitat restoration have been successful.

Darwinism

I first reaction to the ivory-billed woodpecker is that I hope it surveys but in the world we live in it is the survival of the fits. I believe in Darwinism, the strong and the well divers will survive and the weak and over sides animal will die. If the animal is too big and needs a wide range to survive I fear that its habitat through human action or nature has become unsuitable for the birds survival. As humans progress other animals will become extinct. I hope we can keep all the animals around but some animals cannot survive unless they adapt to the new surroundings. The stronger and smaller woodpecker will survive and the bigger woodpecker will die, this is a sad fact of nature. Human should do every thing in there power to help keep the bird alive. I am glad to see the habit of the ivory bill is coming back.

Persists?

I love how the title says "persists" when the information does not seem concrete. Almost in every paragraph, information is presented suggesting the ivory-billed woodpecker is not extinct but is followed by information that says it could be another bird. I think more strong evidence is needed before it is claimed the woodpecker lives. However, it is interesting how like everything, we as humans can blame ourselves for the decreased population of the woodpecker. Now there seems to be a big rush to recover the area and the woodpecker, however, if we didn't kill everything off in the first place none of this would be an issue. Anyway, I would love for ivory-billed woodpecker to still exist but i am not convinced by this article or the videos.

So on today's show we play: Extinct or not? It seems to be anybody's guess...

Maybe I am just crazy but I felt like this article went nowhere. Do not get me wrong, I love hearing that a species has been recovered when thought to be extinct. But here is the thing, I did not hear that, in fact I did not hear much of anything. A man on a boat thought he saw the ivory- billed woodpecker. He took pictures and videos but after careful examination and disection, no decision was made. The article just made a full circle to be perfectly frank. I feel like numbers and words were just thrown into the article to make it seem like there evidence was going somewhere when all it really did was add extra fluff and feathers to this bird of a paper. One idea in this article, that really jumped out at me was how scientists and scholars believe this species of bird became extinct. They have come to the conclusion that it was based on habitat degradation but I feel like there has to be more to that story. While reading this article all I could think about was how all these scholars who study birds and extensive species for a living, can not tell if one little bird is an ivory- billed woodpecker or not. As the reader all we recieved are possible hintings to the bird's existence through the bird's physical characteristics. This article just left me with so many un- answered questions.

woody wood pecker.

What i found most striking was how it came to extinction, like other large american birds, it was not necessarily the hunting of it, but the destruction of vasts habitats. its strange to think of the south east as "forested" but to a great extent it was i guess, and its sad that at the time the use (misuse) of the land was seen as more important than the existence of such an iconic bird. it reminds me of the whooping crane, if anyones ever read even cowgirls get the blues by Tom Robbins, in its Majesty and nostalgic call to the pre colonial american wildlife, and to the call to action that it can make with its absence. in practical terms the ivory billed wood pecker died long ago, stripped of its large nesting areas and genetic diversity, the few specimens that might live in Arkansas are ghosts flying through the forest, reduced to an oddity, and appendage of the countries natural history and past, they can perhaps manifest the longing for what we now know we have lost and traded, but that they could survive into posterity as more than a cartoon, a warning, a taxidermist's coveted whim, i doubt. the future of dying species rests in their preservation (where the genetic pool allows) through the restoration of favorable habitats (balanced natural order of ecosystems where they were meant to be) or through a much scarier line of thought, a compromise perhaps with science, as it is being done in some places, the collection of genetic information of extint or dying species, as is being done successfully with plants, for their eventual relocation and/or recreation... but science does not yet have all those answers, and so people still cringe at the thought of geoengineering and cloning, when in fact i fear that in some cases thats the only door we are leaving open, be it for the wild flowers of the Dakotas or Largest of the woodpeckers

Don't be too quick to celebrate

The scientific article of the ivory-billed woodpecker tends to leave readers with a sense of joy and excitement due to the fact that the ivory-billed woodpecker, once thought to have disappeared from North America, was sighted in the wild in the year 2004. Truly it is thrilling to discover an individual of a species formerly thought not to exist, but we should not be too quick to celebrate. The authors of the article stated that they were unable to rule out the possibility that the ivory-billed woodpeckers sighted on different occasions could be the same bird. If this were to be the case, if only one ivory-billed woodpecker exists today, then certainly the extinction of the species is not far down the road. Even if there are multiple individuals, this study showed that the numbers are few and far between. Their numbers are so low for a reason; humans are adversely effecting the woodpecker’s usable habitat. If there are potential mating pairs this provides us with a second chance to fix our mistakes. We must correct the actions we so easily overlooked in the past, and be more mindful, not only of our effects on the ivory-billed woodpeckers, but on all species inhabiting the Earth.

Case Study 1: Ivory-billed Woodpecker

I think it's really interesting to study the restoration of species based on their adaptation to the world that we've created for them as opposed to their original natural habitats. I'm not saying it's cool for us to haul off and destroy all the forests and hunt down all the wood peckers out there, but it's reassuring to know that there are/could be species rebounding.