I am pleased to announce to the world, with the publication of this photograph, that we now have definitive proof of a PAIR of pileated woodpeckers on our farm. We and hundreds of volunteers have spent countless hours trying to document this species' existence here on our 80 acre farm. We've put up millions of remote listening devices, billions of game cameras, and a couple of suet feeders. And now, the hard work has finally paid off. We HAVE THE PROOF.Wait. What? No!
I'm being told in my headset that pileated woodpeckers are common here in southeastern Ohio. And that I'm confusing this species with the much rarer and possibly extinct ivory-billed woodpecker.
Well, that simply isn't fair. Dang!
If you want to get more familiar with the ivory-billed woodpecker and you've got the upcoming weekend (Feb 24-26) free, why not truck on down to the Call of the Ivory Bill Celebration in Brinkley, Arkansas? Lots of celebrity speakers will be appearing and there are thousands of acres of nearby habitat to search for this ultra-elusive woodpecker.
Wish I could be there with you, but I've got some sound recordings to analyze. I'm pretty sure we've got downy woodpeckers here, too.
I've read that North American skies were once thick with flocks of rock pigeon. Maybe you have some of them too...
ReplyDeleteOn Friday March 3, they were in my woods in Olmsted Twp, southwest of Cleveland, Ohio. We saw them on and off throughout the day until about 4 pm. None since. Amazing! (and the HOLES in the trees they left!)
ReplyDeleteA student in my 10 am music class spotted them. Most of the rest of the class was bird-watching. THe music tried to go on, but these guys were hard to ignore. Especially since we've only seen them mess than 5 times here in 20 years!