A BIRD IN THE SWAMP

BY DAN MILLER
(originally posted May 2, 2005)

Like me, you've probably never seen an ivory-billed woodpecker.
And truthfully, if one had landed on my head, I would've had no clue what it was dealing with...... until now.

For 61 years, no sighting of the elusive bird was ever confirmed. The picture accompanying this essay is an artist's rendering, not an actual photo.
Conventional wisdom said -- despite occasional rumors of sightings -- the ivory-bill, with its spectacular 30-inch wingspan, was extinct..... gone forever.

But, in recent days, with confirmation that the magnificent bird (at least one of them) is alive and well in the swamps of Arkansas -- everything changed.

It's a wonderful discovery that has bird-watchers giddy with excitement.

Conservationists and preservationists are already buying up parts of the swamp to protect it from development or intrusion.

And rest assured, we'll soon hear the call of Arkansas lawmakers, trumpeting their plans to make sure the ivory-billed woodpecker, and the swamp, are protected.

It's happened before, in another state, with the same elusive bird.
But back then -- 34 years ago -- the ivory bill was not actually seen...... it was heard...... or was it?

Consider the story of Alex Sanders, a political science teacher in South Carolina.
In 1971, he used a "recording" of the ivory-billed woodpecker's "call" to stop the clear-cutting of 10,000 acres of the Santee Swamp, a beautiful natural area near Charleston.

He was a young state legislator back then, and somehow -- he says -- obtained an audio recording of the presumably extinct bird.
He took that recording, along with a local TV reporter and an executive of the Audubon Society, on a boat into the swamp, where he played the recording through speakers.
Then, according to those on board, the ivory-billed woodpecker -- unseen -- "answered" from somewhere deep in the swamp.

That's all it took for the Audubon Society and politicians to swing into action, and soon logging and clear-cutting were banned in the Santee swamp, and the pristine natural area was saved.

The bird was never seen, and many still believe it was an elaborate hoax contrived to halt the clearing of the swamp.

But Alex Sanders has always stuck to his story.
However -- in at least one interview -- he added, "Of course, if it hadn't worked, I was prepared to announce the discovery of a long-lost Civil War battlefield in the swamp. We had the cannonballs ready."

This time, in Arkansas, they say they have pictures and video.

I've been told that since life began on this planet, roughly 99 percent of the earth's species have simply disappeared.
And the rate of extinction is increasing rapidly because of human interference in natural ecosystems.

It's always nice to hear about a victory for the underdog.

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