The possible rediscovery of ivory-billed woodpeckers in eastern Arkansas sent a wave of hope through the conservation community in 2004-2005. Yet, like reported sightings in Florida and Louisiana, the discovery remains controversial. Despite an army of observers and the use of high-tech equipment, definitive evidence of surviving ivory-bills remains elusive.
Ivory-billed woodpeckers once inhabited floodplain woodlands throughout the Southeastern U.S., from East Texas to the Carolinas. Timber production, agriculture and other human "development" decimated these old growth, swamp forests and, by the mid 1900s, the ivory-bills were thought to be extinct. While the recent events offer hope, the lessons of this story have more to do with man's impact on nature than on the possible survival of a single species.
While extinctions have occurred throughout the history of our planet, usually related to climate change or the process of natural selection, man-induced extinctions have resulted from a variety of factors. And while over hunting and pollution receive much of the attention, it is the destruction of natural habitat that poses the biggest threat to most species. Our ability to protect the wilderness that remains will depend upon our willingness to contain human population growth and limit our consumption of natural resources. If these goals are not achieved, the ivory-billed woodpecker will remain just another symbol of man's self-centered stewardship of planet Earth.
