Doubts cast on superstar woodpecker's return

newscientist ^ | 13 March 2006 | Bob Holmes

[S0122017]

After bigfoot, Loch Ness monsters and sneaky dinosaurs we can now proudly add the ivory-billed woodpecker to the cryptozoology-list.

[S0122017]

The ivory-billed woodpecker – an American icon among birds (Image: John A Ruthven)

[S0122017]

PING

[Cold Heat]

Although I truly believe the sighting was legit, I also understand that the lack of a viable breeding population likely dooms the bird in any case.

I have viewed the bird that they claim was mistaken for this one, and that video was not of that woodpecker. It had to be a Ivory. No other bird has that much white.

The only thing they have in common are size and shape.

[Rakkasan1]

I saw a pilliated woodpecker outside in my back yard.
damn thing was huge and looked like Woody Woodpecker.

[1rudeboy]

Never mind.

[midwyf]

That was so obviously the biggest pile of BS outside of a feedlot that has come down the pike in many many years. I seriously doubt it was a case of mistaken identity, they got what they wanted, lots of money.
As for a breeding population, if there was one bird it had to come from parents, and none have been seen in far too many eyars to legitimize this. It was a grab for money and power. I don't know if they finally prevented the dam they were trying to eliminate to cut out the farmers.

[S0122017]

So you're theory is that they spraypainted a woodpecker
just to get the funds and then couldn't make any better recordings then one short fragment? Most things biologists do is NOT for money..if we wanted that we would have become laywers.

[pcottraux]

Don't forget rat squirrels.

The video is really not good evidence. Clearly the bird is very large and may be a woodpecker, but it's just too blurry to really tell.

[presidio9]

I prefer the early, borderline psychotic woodpecker from the early forties to the subsequent kinder gentler varieties.

[midwyf]

Read the article again, it is by scientists. There simply was not enough of a picture to tell anything.

[mlc9852]

Not all lawyers are rich.

[S0122017]

It can't be certain, but to claim it must be about money goes to far. Ít is not right to presume that everyone is out to get money and is willing to fake stuff for it whole day long.

[ClearCase_guy]

I have to agree. I mean, they have video of bigfoot too. But it's not like everyone in the world said "Bigfoot must be real. I saw the video. That's enough for me!"

But, with the woodpecker, that's really what people said. A few seconds of blurry video and we have a proven scientific fact. Sheesh!

[S0122017]

The woodpecker was alive just a sort while ago, that makes it more convincing. Plesiosaurs are a bit longer gone..
also, plesiosaurs are really difficult to hide.
A few woodpeckers can hide, i mean they're birds in a very large forest.

[ClearCase_guy]

Elvis was alive more recently than the woodpecker. But if I saw a few seconds of video featuring The King next to Brad Pitt, I would not be convinced that he was in the building.

[S0122017]

Elvis was alive more recently than the woodpecker. But if I saw a few seconds of video featuring The King next to Brad Pitt, I would not be convinced that he was in the building.

Ok touche.

[GreenFreeper]

ECO-PING

FReepmail me to be added or removed to the ECO-PING list!

It's all a fraud.... :)

[Marine_Uncle]

" It's all a fraud.... :)"
Yep.

[S0122017]

http://www.sciencemag.org/content/vol0/issue2005/images/data/1114103/DC1/1114103S1.mov