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11/18/06

In the latest "BIRDSCOPE" bulletin that comes with "THE LIVING BIRD" magazine, there is a recap of the recent probable Ivory-billed Woodpecker sightings in the Florida panhandle. That location is quite close to the Eglin AFB, with its groves of (off limits) old-growth Pines. Since the Ivory-bills of the olden days foraged in virgin pines, I think old pine groves (now a rarity) within range should be watched.

But what really interested me was the little article on DNA testing of both the Ivory-bill and the Cuban Ivory-bill. It concludes that those subspecies have been geographically separated for a million Years, and that they are really two different species! But the basic question still remains: how did it get to Cuba in the first place. The article didn't mention any DNA tests of the Imperial Woodpecker.

Vol. 20, N0. 4 (Cornell Lab of Ornithology: BIRDSCOPE).

Phil Hotlen
Bellingham, WAA
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