-- At Last, A Photo! ; - ) --

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Finally, as passed along to me from one of my astute top-secret sources, a photo of the biggest woodpecker in N. America:

Here! .....[ for (im)mature?? audiences only ]

--- And below an article from yesterday's Times-Picayune newspaper on the search for the Ivory-bill in the Pearl River area with reference to Mike Collins and Susan Epps:

http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-17/1160293173143460.xml&coll=1&thispage=1

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-- Another Blast From the Past --

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For today, again I'll just re-run a post from one year ago:

"People often don't realize how many sightings of Ivory-bills have been turned in over the decades. Some folks have the impression there are but a couple of unverified reports over the last 60 years and that's it (...no wonder they buy into a notion of IBWO extinction). Most IBWO literature mentions at most just a couple dozen Ivory-bill claims since the mid-40's that have some credibility, but the actual number of reports in that time (that could not be quickly dismissed as hoaxes or mis-identifications) are many times that number -- only the MOST credible ones make their way into the literature. On-the-other-hand, so far as I'm aware the Ivory-bill's contemporary, the Passenger Pigeon, has had virtually no credible reports since the 1930's (indeed few since it's supposed extinction in 1914), while reports of Ivory-bills are a regular occurrence during that time. If mistaken identifications are such a common occurrence one must wonder why have there not been dozens of reports of Passenger Pigeons over the decades, a species with a far wider-ranging habitat than the IBWO and one that could easily be confused with various other birds given a quick glance? Yet P. Pigeon sightings lie dormant while IBWOs show up again and again and again...

BUUUT... what has always intrigued this writer most is NOT the many IBWO sightings turned in over time, but the likely dozens more sightings NEVER turned in at all. They fall into the following categories:

1. Birders who believe they have seen Ivory-bills but never reported it for fear of the scoffing, jeering, or intimidation they would face.

2. Birders who believe they have seen Ivory-bills (might even have photographic proof), but who believe it UNethical to report such a finding, for fear of the potential havoc brought upon the birds.

3. Birders who have had fleeting 'low-qualiity' glances at big black-and-white woodpeckers in woods and automatically shrugged it off as Pileateds, when in fact they had observed IBWOs.

4. Hunters, fisherman, backwoodsmen, who have seen IBWOs, but didn't have a clue what they were seeing (nor care) and so never reported it.

5. Hunters, fishermen, etc. who have seen IBWOs, and knew EXACTLY what they were seeing, and deliberately chose NOT to report it for fear of Government intervention and tight regulation of the land involved.

My guess is we would be stunned if we knew the actual number of human-Ivorybill encounters in the last 60 years, and it would leave little doubt but that the species survives today in remote corners of the American Southeast.
Has any other bird species EVER generated so many reports over a 60-year period and still been written off as extinct by so many? I doubt it."

In a couple months birders will assiduously fan out to cover their (easily-accessible) local areas in the most methodical organized birding that regularly takes place, called Christmas counts. For all those efforts, the data generated will be some of the most weak, loose, imprecise, nonvalid, questionable, and unverified data that gets routinely published in the scientific world. As yearly data it is virtually meaningless and uninterpretable (only by looking over 10-20 year 'trends' can meaning sometimes be teased from it). And the search for the Ivory-bill has never even met that level of effort. When all the bottomland/swampland areas of the South have been thoroughly searched (as well as certain other forest tracts) then folks can pass some reasonable judgment on the survival of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. Ahead of that time skeptics are just wildly speculating, without any good basis, that a bird that keeps getting reported is no longer with us. Ohhh, and please keep those Passenger Pigeon reports rolling in as well...
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-- Another New Species --

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Yet another newly-discovered bird species has been found, this time a "brush-finch" in the Colombian mountains --- visit locales birders rarely traverse and (surprise, surprise) find birds rarely if ever seen before:

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-10/ci-nbd100506.php

(...or pray tell, is it just a case of a leucistic pileated house sparrow and some overactive imaginations???)

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-- Is This Whole Debate Giving You a Headache? --

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If this whole Ivory-billed debate is giving you a headache you may want to read this article by Dr. Ivan R. Schwab of the University of California, Davis, on how Pileated Woodpeckers carry on their lives pounding daily on wood and not getting a headache. Schwab and the late Dr. Philip May (UCLA) just won an Ig Nobel prize for their work on why woodpeckers don't get headaches : - )

http://bjo.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/86/8/843

On the other hand, if this whole subject is giving you gas and flatulance, then I'm afraid I can't help you.
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-- Another Searcher's Report --

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One of my readers has sent in the following link to his search report from the Choctawhatchee:

http://www.southfloridabirding.com/html/Choctawhatchee.html

Search took place in early Sept. and was unsuccessful, but nice reporting on the area and lots of photos to give a feel for the habitat. Best chance of a 'successful' search for the birds (with photos) will be during the winter months when leaves are off the trees.

By the way, Cornell is continuing their call for participants for the continued search of the Arkansas Big Woods this winter. Don't know if they will have a hard time filling slots, given the re-directed interest in Florida now, but I would urge those who are able to lend them a hand. They'll be concentrating on the White River Refuge this season and the vast majority of that habitat was NOT searched last year. I, for one, believe there are still Ivory-bills waiting to be found there.

Finally, in the "gotta-give-'em-a-plug" Dept. I noticed on the "Partners" section of Dan Mennill's Ivory-bill website several of the usual sorts of conservation participants, but then one a little more unusual, the Pelee Island Winery. If they support the search for the Ivory-bill then I'm all for... hic... supporting... hiccup... them... hic... (seriously, they look to be a very environmentally-conscious business deserving our patronage). Check out some of their red wines here, complete with birds on the labels, and then browse the rest of their site:

http://www.peleeisland.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_main.html?catid=5

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-- Those Nonchalant Florida Birders --

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Laura Erickson, at the Veracruz conference, posted some thoughts/impressions on her blog following Dr. Hill's and Mennill's presentation at yesterday's proceedings: http://www.birderblog.com/post.php?id=1591

I think it worth pointing out that while in front of such a professional gathering Dr. Hill must speak modestly and of the need for yet further (photographic) evidence to prove the Ivory-bill's existence, but there should be no doubt of his own personal certainty that he, Tyler Hicks, and Brian Rolek have all seen one or more Ivory-bills in the Florida Panhandle.

Maybe Floridians are just more accustomed than most folks to dealing with unusual and rare bird reports, or more particularly, maybe they're just more accustomed to hearing Ivory-bill rumors over the decades than other birders... It was somewhat interesting, during the months prior to the official Florida Ivory-bill announcement, when rumors were bubbling in many quarters, to see that nothing at all was showing up about it on Florida birding listserv postings. Now, even since the official announcement, relatively few Florida posters have concerned themselves with the woodpecker excitement in their own backyard. Since there have been many previous purported sightings in the Panhandle over time, I'm a bit surprised that the listserv has not seen a small rush of folks piping up to say that they too (or their friend, or brother, or mother-in-law) thought they saw an Ivory-bill in the Panhandle back in such-and-such a year but never reported it, or maybe such claims are being turned in through private channels (or it may simply be explainable by the small % of Fla. birders who actively participate in the Fla. listserv). In any event the nonchalant, unruffled reaction from Floridians, is still much preferred to the cynical, derisive tone emitted from some other quarters (...where a lot of folks are so gosh-darn sure of themselves they post under the "anonymous" handle). And just maybe if we ever truly know the total number of Ivory-bills throughout the state of Florida, it will indeed be something to be nonchalant about.

On a sidenote, Mike Collins posted this photo of some rather unusual bark-scaling in the Pearl River area (La.) yesterday; an Ivory-bill on meth. perhaps, or an Ivory-bill on Matisse???
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-- One Year Ago --

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Nobel Prizes are currently being doled out, which reminded me of the blog post here from one year ago, and worth repeating:

" A couple days ago Larry Marshall and Robin Warren won the 2005 Nobel Prize in Medicine for their discovery almost 25 years ago that a bacterium helicobacter pylori was the cause of most stomach ulcers and gastritis. At the time (when it was widely believed ulcers were caused by over-acidity) peers called the contention "preposterous," since bacteria obviously couldn't survive in stomach acid. The findings and discoverers were shunned and denigrated, and it took many years for Marshall and Warren to prove themselves right and the skeptics wrong. Today researchers are looking at what role microbes may play in many other inflammatory ailments, no longer scoffing at this one-time un-establishment notion. Medicine is a field full of instances of entrenched 'accepted knowledge' being overturned in time. So too... field biology."

No matter how many people voice a given dogma (in our case Ivory-bill extinction), it doesn't make it so, especially when so little evidence exists to support it. However, in time, regardless of how many are voicing the dogma, they may all appear foolish if the evidence becomes clearcut in favor of a long-held minority view. And at that point the credibility and competency of the dogma-worshippers becomes open to question on additional matters...

Speaking of Ivory-bills, Laura Erickson reports that a talk on the Florida Ivorybill find will be given today over the lunch hour at the conference in Veracruz. Don't expect the talk to have anything new that hasn't already been released, but a chance to gauge some of the reaction to it.
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-- Nokuse Plantation --

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While biding time a bit, may want to read about how the beautiful and private, 50,000+ acre Nokuse Plantation, near the Chocatwhatchee WMA, is joining forces with the Auburn team in the search for the Ivory-bill in the Florida panhandle:

http://www.nokuse.org/ibwo.htm

For folks thinking of heading down to the Florida panhandle for a look-see, keep in mind that the Chipola-Apalachicola bottomland areas east of the Choctawhatchee, and the Escambia River forest west of the Choctawhatchee are other areas of intense interest for the Ivory-bill. Throughout Florida, and the entire southeast for that matter, there are so many acres of difficult or limited accessibility, which have only had truly cursory attention by birders over the last half century.
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-- Back To The Pearl, and Elsewhere --

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Over the weekend Mike Collins reported that he and another individual saw an Ivory-bill in flight at the Pearl River area in Louisiana. According to Mike they were led to this specific locale by a report passed along from Geoff Hill (of the Fla. sightings) regarding yet another person's recent claim.

Birders are arriving in Veracruz for the conference that gets underway tomorrow. Don't know if I'll get any direct reports from the meeting itself but Laura Erickson, who is there, will no doubt be reporting updates on her blog, as time and internet access allows. Will be interesting to hear how Dr. Hill's and Mennill's work is received since it probably raises as many (or more) questions than it renders answers for. Especially interesting is their use of "bark adhesion" measurements as a potential indicator of Ivory-bill presence (I'm not aware of this sign ever being empirically used before). It involves a great many difficult-to-integrate variables, but if their data stand up under scrutiny it may hold much promise for the study of other forest tracts (ASSUMING similar foraging habits in IBWOs from different geographic locales -- likely, but not necessarily the case).

And in the "fancy-meeting-you-here" dept. a birder on the Fla. listserv noted running into Bobby Harrison (of Big Woods IBWO fame) along the Choctawhatchee River of all places this weekend... hmmm, what'ya bet he was packin' binocs, a camera, and some home-made decoys???
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-- How To Get An Ivory-bill Picture --

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thankfully, in time for the upcoming search season, this just in from the desk of David Letterman....


TOP 10 Ways To Get a Photo of an Ivory-billed Woodpecker:
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10. Sneak up on it from behind.

9. Use ‘Google Earth' to zoom in on the Florida panhandle and look for a foraging Ivory-bill; as soon as you spot it snap a screen shot.

8. Travel to the swamp; nail ads to bark-scaled trees saying you’re a photographer with Playbird Magazine seeking centerfold applicants for the April issue; see who shows up.

7. Use mental telepathy... or, if that fails, pray a lot... or, if that fails, use Photoshop.

6. Take a canoe ride with David Luneau.

5. Using a swinging pocketwatch hypnotize the bird, putting it to sleep; then snap all the pictures you want.

4. Strategically place signs in the bayou announcing, “big, juicy, scrumptious, wood-boring beetle larvae sold here!” When an Ivory-bill stops by to check out your prices take its picture.

3. While you’re in the swamp just ask Bigfoot where to find one.

2. Use an MRI machine to take a photo of one of cyberthrush’s nightly dreams.


1. Simple, Sherlock: find Ivory-bill poop; look up; snap a picture!!!

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-- Reminders --

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Rightfully so, the Florida news has captured everyone's attention lately, but no one should forget that this winter there will also be organized searches in Arkansas, Texas, and South Carolina at a minimum; and if you time it right you can participate in at least two different states. I would hope that some level of official, organized (academic or FWS-sponsored) searching would take place in Louisiana, Mississippi, southern Georgia, southern Alabama, and western Tennessee as well, but don't know what the chances are. Probably those birders both willing and able to commit to such exploits will already be spread thin enough with just those first four states.

This year's AOU meeting in Veracruz, Mexico, begins Oct 3. Thank goodness all the Florida stuff is out on the table ahead of time so that attendees can actually have some intelligent discussion of it. What may be just as interesting as any empirical discussion of the evidence will be the more human elements, reactions, emotions, chatter, controversy, exhibited. This whole topic is such a hot potato by now, I suspect we will witness the same hesitancy (even cowardice I would say) on the part of many ornithologists to stick their necks out or take the issue seriously as has been exhibited for 50 years -- fearing to voice the minority view that Ivory-bills survive. Rather than take a proactive stance for fear it might turn out to be wrong, they'll instead sit back in a do-nothing-say-nothing, cautious, wait-and-see posture. In the meantime the life of a species hangs in the balance. It is ashame that at a time when we should be encouraging all possible reports/claims from credible sources to be turned in cynics, with their derision, negativity, antagonism, general disparagement are once again discouraging/hindering such disclosures. In regard to the Ivory-billed Woodpecker and the majority of birders/ornithologists who ought to be on its side, that old adage seems to hold forth: "with friends like these who needs enemies."
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-- ...And Another Commentary --

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Thanks to Laura Erickson for clueing me in to this IBWO commentary, in the Miami Herald, from a 'developers' point-of-view:

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/15624722.htm
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-- Are We Having Fun Yet!? --

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Here we go again... the bashing of the Florida Ivory-bill sightings and sighters is under full-swing from the Ivory-bills-are-extinct-because-we-say-so crowd. It is clear that until photographic evidence is obtained other forms of evidence for the existence of Ivory-bills are virtually a moot point in many quarters at this point. This is a horrible state-of-affairs (given again that it is based on an unsupported presumption of the bird's extinction), but it forces the hand of all those doing searches --- effort that might better be expended in other ways and study, must now be concentrated on attaining the demanded photographic evidence, before other progress can follow. With that in mind, just a few suggestions regarding the forthcoming Florida winter search:

1. whenever possible searchers should operate in pairs (one of whom carries a videocamera), and should proceed from opposite ends of search areas -- i.e., if a main search area is a 3 mi. stretch along the Choctawhatchee, half the search teams start at the north end (both sides of river and in the river itself) moving slowly south and half at the south end moving north.

2. at least one person (maybe more) on the project should have significant, if not professional-level, photography skills, operating a quality zoom camera (not just a videocam) under the given habitat conditions. This person need not even be a knowledgeable birder, but rather have the requisite wildlife photography skills and experience.

3. until photographic evidence is obtained, concentrate time looking for and monitoring FRESHLY-made scrapings and cavities, and less time on cataloguing all cavities and foraging signs, and thoroughly search such areas for feathers-of-interest as well. In areas of fresh appearing scrapings slather a molasses-type product on nearby tree trunks/stumps to try and further attract the birds (or attract insects that will attract the birds). Frankly, spend less time in general on sound recordings (but of course monitor areas from which sounds emanate), field notes, routine data collection, going to the bathroom(!), etc. until the necessary video/photo is obtained --- in short, initially forego a lot of normal and potentially valuable study data, in favor of simply documenting the species photographically. Once obtained then the study can proceed in the comprehensive manner that is most important. It is a sad state of affairs when one feels compelled to tell a team of scientists, "DON'T do research for the time being, do PHOTOGRAPHY," but that is where we've arrived at in the current Bizarro world of ornithology. One wonders what scientists a century henceforth will think when they look back at the foolishness of those who would let a species die by sheer neglect for lack of a pretty picture.
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-- Summary of Links --

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Just a quick summary of some of the most relevant links from the last 24 hrs. (on Fla. Ivory-bills):

Dr. Geoff Hill's Auburn webpage on the Florida discovery:
http://www.auburn.edu/academic/science_math/cosam/departments/biology/faculty/webpages/hill/ivorybill/index.html

Dr. Dan Mennill's (collaborator with Dr. Hill) website on the discovery and evidence:
http://web2.uwindsor.ca/courses/biology/dmennill/IBWO/IBWOindex.php

current issue of online journal Avian Conservation and Ecology including Dr. Hill et.al.'s research:
http://www.ace-eco.org/

To apply for a position with the Auburn team as a field tech this winter:
http://www.auburn.edu/academic/science_math/cosam/departments/biology/faculty/webpages/hill/ivorybill/Join.html

Good newspaper coverage of the Florida find:
http://www.annistonstar.com/opinion/2006/as-columns-0925-jflemingcol-6i25u1829.htm

Florida Fish & Wildlife Commission report on "historical distribution and habitat" for Ivory-bills in the state:
http://myFWC.com/imperiledspecies/reports/FloridaReportRecoveryPlanFinal_June06.pdf

Radio program ("Wildside News") including an interview with Dr. Hill:
http://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/wildsidenews/wsnsegments/092806a.wax
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-- Florida Cliff Notes --

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Here's a brief summary and commentary of the news from Florida -- and I want to stress people should still read as much of the online material on their own as they can in order to get a sense of the detail I am leaving out:

In May of 2005 experienced birder Tyler Hicks (while with 2 other people from Auburn University) spotted an Ivory-bill in flight along the Choctawhatchee river in the Florida panhandle. Since then at least 13 credible sightings have been recorded by the Auburn team consisting of lead investigator Dr. Geoff Hill, Dr. Dan Mennill of U. of Windsor (in Canada), and grad students Brian Rolek, Tyler Hicks, and Kyle Swinston. Hicks' 2 sightings are regarded as 2 of the most detailed (including sighting a female), but Rolek has actually had 10 of the total sightings. Also worth noting, 2 of the sightings were of a pair of the birds. Dr. Hill is quoted as saying, "I am 100% positive I saw an Ivory-bill," and additionally as commenting in regards to the amassed evidence, "I can't imagine how we could be wrong."
7 observers to the area heard either "kent" calls or double-knocks as associated with IBWOs, and these occurred over 41 separate occasions. As many as 50 kent calls and 45 double-knocks occurred during the single greatest instance. 7 automatic recording units that were put in place recorded 210 instances of possible kent calls, and 99 possible double-knocks.
Numerous large cavities were found in the area including 131 that were measured and catalogued. Significant instances of bark scaling were also documented, including the tightness of the bark-adherence, which in some cases only an Ivory-bill could likely accomplish.
The Choctawhatchee has ~60 km of bottomland habitat likely suitable for IBWOs, only a small patch of which was actively explored. Dr. Hill DOES NOT want the specific location of their study given out, for obvious reasons, and would like the birds and his team to be left undisturbed when on premises. However, he does list several other areas on his webpage along the Chocawhatchee that are worthy of study (also, they found no evidence for IBWO north of the Choctawhatchee in Alabama). And I'll just add that there are areas in every single southern state, and also Illinois, Missouri, Tennessee, and Kentucky that need some attention, so, please, don't everyone think of rushing to the Florida panhandle. Again I would surmise that IBWOs exist in a minimum of 5 states and possibly as many as 9.
Though the team involved in this find is thoroughly convinced of the presence of Ivory-bills, they concede that in today's atmosphere their evidence falls short of 'definitive, due to the lack of adequate video/photo documentation (they have some very poor video/photo, which they have chosen, I think wisely, not to release -- in today's atmosphere, as they have acknowledged, having no video/photo is better than having fuzzy video/photo, which simply distracts from the rest of the evidence).

Now, for some commentary -- just initial reaction from my first go-over of the data/evidence:

1. any such bottomland backwater area is likely to include many large woodpecker cavities; I don't find anything very convincing in the specific cavities that are exhibited on the website, despite the measurements, which in some cases might be indicative of IBWO (but could've been enlarged by other means or animals, as well). Many of the photoed holes seem clearly not to be IBWO and I'm not clear what the purpose of even including them on the site is (unless it is strictly for comparative purposes).

2. auditory evidence is always difficult to assess due to many variables; the sheer volume of it here however is rather impressive; the fact that 'kents' and double-knocks are often found in conjunction with one-another, and also in conjunction with major bark-scaling is certainly enticing, as well as the fact that so much was picked up on ARUs in addition to what humans heard; intriguing evidence to be sure, but not conclusive.

3. the scaling of tightly-adhering bark (assuming the measurements are accurate) is a very suggestive sign, although in general, we are not at a point yet where scalings can be diagnostic yet for either PIWO or IBWO.

4. finally, yet once again, what is most powerful in this evidence (in my view) are the human sightings/descriptions by credible, experienced birders who know Pileateds from IBWO -- at least 13 total -- including again, different days, different angles, different observers, and sightings of female birds (and yes, there happen to be field notes as well).

From my standpoint we are dealing here with Ivory-bills until shown otherwise, because those on-site who should know, believe so --- this is opposite of how skeptics choose to see it ('they saw Pileateds until proven otherwise'), because of their underlying, ill-supported, but unwavering belief in Ivory-bill extinction which skews their perception of any gathered evidence.
In fairness to skeptics though, let me concede that this still could all be an elaborate hoax involving cleverly-made, remote-controlled mechanical decoys (at least I know of NO EVIDENCE WHATSOEVER ruling this out) --- until someone catches and cuts open one of these Florida specimens to see if perchance they are filled with mere electromechanical circuits and hardware, in place of muscle and internal organs, we must be open to all alternative explanations... or so at least may run the next line of argument from some cynic out there!! It won't surprise me. Seriously, I fear the eventual result of all this controversy, in an area that simply cannot be policed, will at some point be delivery of a dead carcass. And THEN, maybe, perhaps, we'll ALL be convinced.
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-- Florida IBWO Webpage/ Addendum --

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Dr. Geoff Hill's IBWO webpage appears to be back up at same URL used yesterday (can't tell at a quick glance what changes/updates there may be), but assume this is the updated version. It includes a link to their online journal article.

Having a lot of problems this morning uploading posts on Blogger --- great timing Blogger ! : - (((
I know some others around the country are having same difficulty, so not sure how often I'll be on today, but at some point today or tomorrow will try to summarize the Florida findings. In the meantime read and digest... For others having same difficulty I did have some luck switching from Firefox to a different browser just for uploading purposes, FWIW.

===> Addendum: those interested in APPLYING FOR POSITIONS with the search team can go directly to this page for application info:

http://www.auburn.edu/academic/science_math/cosam/departments/biology/faculty/webpages/hill/ivorybill/Join.html

Also, just realized that the first issue of the online journal in which Dr. Hill's paper appears contains an additional Ivory-bill article (essay) on saving the the species' habitat:

http://www.ace-eco.org/vol1/iss1/art6/

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-- More Reading --

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Given that we have yet to see a summary report of last season's Arkansas search come out of Cornell yet, good article here on the past and upcoming more-streamlined Cornell efforts:

http://www.cornellsun.com/node/18563

If you like being able to say "I read it in The New York Times" you can peruse their initial (somewhat weak) coverage of the Florida find here (requires free registration), but hardly worth bothering with since the Anniston article below is MUCH better.

Also, for anyone interested in a one-year position in South Carolina take a look at this post over on Birdchick's blog requesting applicants for an Ivory-bill search leader in prime S.C. locales:

http://www.birdchick.com/2006/09/ivory-billed-woodpecker-job.html

no doubt there will be many more coverages of the Florida news in next day or two, but once Dr. Hill's webpage is posted (soon) I probably won't cite very many other references unless they truly add additional news or perspective to the story.
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-- News Article --

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While awaiting the re-posting of Dr. Hill's Florida IBWO-sightings website it is worth reading this nice, extensive coverage of the announcement in the Anniston Star newspaper (if you need a registration to open the article you can get a free 24-hour trial under the "services" section). Some good quotes and additional info:

http://www.annistonstar.com/opinion/2006/as-columns-0925-jflemingcol-6i25u1829.htm

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