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The Ivory Billed Woodpecker

This Science Minute was researched and written by Dave M., of Ithaca, NY.

An Ivory Billed Woodpecker hasn't been sighted for 60 years... until now. Amazingly, several of these birds have recently been seen along the swampy coasts of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi.

Ivory Billed Woodpeckers are beautiful birds with an enormous wingspan, a distinctive black and white body, a red head, and, of course, an awesome ivory-colored bill. The birds mainly feed on beetle larvae, fruit, berries, and nuts.

Now that they've rediscovered the Ivory Billed Woodpecker, scientists wonder how many of these birds are left and how they can be protected. Naturalists hope that by conserving their habitat, Ivory Billed Woodpeckers might thrive again someday.