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Again, unless or until I find something really promising, Ivory-bill matters have been on a backburner for me for quite awhile, but feel I ought do a li'l update for those who keep sending in questions/comments, or who may have missed these bits of news. So….
1) Mark Michaels sent out a note some time ago basically saying what a difficult year 2020 had been for their research (they are still analyzing some of their data), and hoping 2021 would be better. Between weather extremities, ongoing covid concerns, and just the usual difficulties of IBWO searches, I’m not really too encouraged that 2021 will prove much better, but who knows.
https://www.aviary.org/conservation/projects/project-principalis/project-principalis-updates/
2) Matt Courtman, who previously worked with Michaels’ group, and who believes he’s had IBWO encounters, has his own active project up-and-running under the heading “Louisiana Wilds.” In addition to doing fieldwork, he is actively engaging on Facebook with IBWO buffs here:
https://www.facebook.com/TheLouisianaWilds
…and is doing a weekly (Monday nights; yes tonight!) interactive Zoom discussion on various IBWO topics as well:
https://www.facebook.com/events/2871406676430877/
3) For those asking, no I don’t know what is up with the IBWO Researchers Forum, as their “Forum” section seems to be down (other parts of their site operating OK). They recently paid for another year of Web presence, and the Forum had been a very active section in prior years, though much more subdued in recent years. If anyone knows what the problem is, or if it’s being worked on, feel free to inform us.
4) Someone on Facebook recently commented that Birdforum.net (probably the largest, oldest birding discussion site on the Web) was not allowing for discussion of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. I’m doubtful that that’s the case, though it’s possible they’re limiting or editing such discussions, as the same points, arguments, ideas, etc. keep coming up redundantly over and over again. Here are some of the more recent postings they’ve had on the Ivory-bill, though in a quick check I could not locate the many looooong threads they had in earlier years (have they indeed been edited out or archived somewhere???):
https://www.birdforum.net/search/438525/?q=ivory-billed+woodpecker&o=relevance
Their original thread, following the Cornell announcement, I believe was the longest thread (by far) in the entire history of the site; so it’s not as if they haven’t covered this topic fully in 1000s of postings done there previously, and I’m sure are open to any new real documentation that arises; but for many long-time members there the constant round-and-round rehash of old, old, old debates becomes well, old....
5) Mike Collins, who was very active in those early BirdForum IBWO back-and-forths (and burned some bridges there), again offered his YouTube take on matters a month ago:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6OZTDbb5Fw
6) Anyway, while I’m not optimistic about any solid new evidence for IBWO appearing anytime soon, good luck to all carrying on searches, in what may well be another heavily covid-affected year — unlike the pandemic optimism I keep hearing from many others, I actually have far more concern about covid now, with its multiplying variants, than I've had for the entire last year where, with basic precautions taken, vulnerability, I think, was much lower for most individuals. So be careful out there.
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