[TN-Bird] A newscaster's ivory-bill comment
- From: Dthomp2669@xxxxxxx
- To: Dthomp2669@xxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 31 May 2005 14:53:37 EDT
It occurred to me that birders would like to see the article about the
ivory-billed published on "Dan Miller's Musings," a part of the WSMV-TV web
site. I
do not think Miller is a "birder" in the context that we know it.
Dee Thompson
Nashville, TN
A BIRD IN THE SWAMP
http://www.wsmv.com/Global/story.asp?S=3287365
May 2, 2005
by Dan Miller (News Anchor, WSMV-TV, Channel 4, Nashville,TN)
A BIRD IN THE SWAMP
Like me, you've probably never seen an ivory-billed woodpecker.
And truthfully, if one had landed on my head, I would've had no clue what I
was dealing with...... until now.
For 61 years, no sighting of the elusive bird was ever confirmed. The
picture accompanying this essay is an artist's rendering, not an actual photo.
Conventional wisdom said -- despite occasional rumors of sightings -- the
ivory-bill, with its spectacular 30-inch wingspan, was extinct..... gone
forever.
But, in recent days, with confirmation that the magnificent bird (at least
one of them) is alive and well in the swamps of Arkansas -- everything changed.
It's a wonderful discovery that has bird-watchers giddy with excitement.
Conservationists and preservationists are already buying up parts of the
swamp to protect it from development or intrusion.
And rest assured, we'll soon hear the call of Arkansas lawmakers, trumpeting
their plans to make sure the ivory-billed woodpecker, and the swamp, are
protected.
It's happened before, in another state, with the same elusive bird.
But back then -- 34 years ago -- the ivory bill was not actually seen......
it was heard...... or was it?
Consider the story of Alex Sanders, a political science teacher in South
Carolina.
In 1971, he used a "recording" of the ivory-billed woodpecker's "call" to
stop the clear-cutting of 10,000 acres of the Santee Swamp, a beautiful natural
area near Charleston.
He was a young state legislator back then, and somehow -- he says -- obtained
an audio recording of the presumably extinct bird.
He took that recording, along with a local TV reporter and an executive of
the Audubon Society, on a boat into the swamp, where he played the recording
through speakers.
Then, according to those on board, the ivory-billed woodpecker -- unseen --
"answered" from somewhere deep in the swamp.
That's all it took for the Audubon Society and politicians to swing into
action, and soon logging and clear-cutting were banned in the Santee swamp, and
the pristine natural area was saved.
The bird was never seen, and many still believe it was an elaborate hoax
contrived to halt the clearing of the swamp.
But Alex Sanders has always stuck to his story.
However -- in at least one interview -- he added, "Of course, if it hadn't
worked, I was prepared to announce the discovery of a long-lost Civil War
battlefield in the swamp. We had the cannonballs ready."
This time, in Arkansas, they say they have pictures and video.
I've been told that since life began on this planet, roughly 99 percent of
the earth's species have simply disappeared.
And the rate of extinction is increasing rapidly because of human
interference in natural ecosystems.
It's always nice to hear about a victory for the underdog.
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