-- Facebook --

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Since I’m not expecting much news near-term that I think important enough to post about here at the blog, I am testing out Facebook for less important postings here:

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61561193462258

(Like many) not really a fan of FB (nor its oligarchic head honcho 😦), but of course it’s beaten out all its competitors leaving few options. Currently, am not accepting any friend requests and hoping to limit overall involvement with it…. but, we’ll see.

In the unlikely event that any readers here don’t already know, there are several “Groups” (both ‘public’ and ‘private’) on FB exclusively focused on the Ivorybill debate, with Dwight Norris’s being the largest and most active (over 9000 members at this point):

https://www.facebook.com/groups/179784035376368

Other IBWO groups are easily findable as well, including one geared to skeptics (70+ members):

https://www.facebook.com/groups/220897210949459

I realize a lot of folks by now have abandoned FB, so even public "Group" postings will not be accessible to you without an account.... [but correct me if I'm wrong?]

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ADDENDUM  3/30:

Speaking of Facebook, just came across this short video there which I like as an example hinting of how PIWOs can knock off large bark chunks going after food sources (the bark does not appear at all tight, but the ground below may simply be strewn with large pieces):

https://fb.watch/yF7mz_JpKH/

Occasionally folks send me pics of worked/stripped trees with large bark slabs below in hopes of IBWO presence…. not necessarily so…..

-- Drone Technology --

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Don Scheifler has been using drones for awhile now aiding an Ivory-billed search effort in La.  He’s recently shared some of his work on FB. I’ll just link to a couple of his examples for now:

This one gives a good indication of the drone technology camera potential (the bird involved is of course a Pileated, but nice camera work):

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1EJHaPr4T9/

…and this one is a wonderful demonstration showing thermal detection (bright dots on the left) of two creatures, which turn out to be (on the right) identifiable PIWOs:

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1Yb1MSN4gV/

Great work Don; thanks for sharing!

(If anyone has technical questions about the specs of Don's equipment or his technique send them to me and I'll pass along to him, if you are not able to contact him directly.)

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-- Off-topic, But Too Cooool Not To Pass Along --

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 Probably safe to say that Snowy Owls are among every birder’s favorite creatures. This very odd-colored one (nicknamed “Rusty” by admirers) showed up in Michigan recently:

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/11/science/snowy-owl-orange-michigan-rusty.html?unlocked_article_code=1.3U4.rLUB.X_DLEj4qSr5F&smid=url-share

(if the above NY Times article is not accessible for you, here's another, earlier piece:

https://www.mlive.com/environment/2025/02/rusty-colored-michigan-snowy-owl-turning-heads-likely-a-genetic-mutation.html )

Auburn’s Dr. Geoffrey Hill, of some Ivory-bill notoriety, but also an expert on avian feathers weighs in believing the unusual coloring is most likely from dye or coloring applied somehow externally to the feathers. Bird researcher Scott Weidensaul agrees with the notion of external application (possibly de-icer fluid somewhere along the way), but others are less convinced of the external argument and lean toward some sort of biological or genetic interpretation. I'd tend to go with Dr. Hill here, and against the mutation-hypothesis... but we may well never know for sure. :(

(IF anyone does come across a more definitive explanation for this bird let us know; I haven't kept up on the story.)

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ADDENDUM 3/24:

I've yet to see any definitive explanation for this bird's coloration.... and given how repeatedly the bird has been seen, am a little surprised no one has yet come up with a single feather dropping from it -- one examined feather ought be sufficient to tell if the red hue is applied to the surface or intrinsic to the feather. This paragraph, at the end of one article, seems reasonable to me:

"Birding Wire note: It is interesting to note that when you study the photograph of the Snowy Owl in flight, taken by Julie Maggert, you can see that the plumage covering the underside of the owl is normally colored, while the orange-red coloration covers most of its anterior side of its wings and tail, its back, and its head, including parts of its face. This might suggest the owl was somehow sprayed from behind and it turned its head to the rear during the process. This would underline the possibility that the owl was accidently sprayed with de-icing fluid at an airport, especially considering that the open expanses of airports are seemingly a preferred wintering area for some Snowy Owls in the eastern Great Lakes region, as indicated by SnowStorm tracking information."