Two tall trees, a birch and a beech, are growing in the woods. A small tree begins to grow between them, and the beech says to the birch, 'Is that a son of a beech or a son of a birch?'

The birch says he cannot tell. Just then a woodpecker lands on the
sapling. The birch says, 'Woodpecker, you are a tree expert. Can you tell if that is a son of a beech, or a son of a birch?'

The woodpecker takes a taste of the small tree. He replies, 'It is
neither a son of a beech nor a son of a birch. It is, however, the best piece of ash I have ever put mypecker in.'

I wonder if some of them even got a little woody when they saw that.

Mixed emotions watching that footage...joy at seeing a magnificent bird I've never seen before, and sadness at how we let it die.

Looking at that makes me happy and sad at the same time.

Cornell has the greatest ornithology program in existence. I think they're still down in the swamps looking for the ivory-billed woodpecker too. No proof of any living ones so far, dammit.

Woodpecker peckin' in my back yard,
He pecked so much his pecker got hard.

Woodpeckers might the only animal that is more annoying live than animated.

SN1987a goes boom: [t0.gstatic.com image 260x194]

Woodpeckers might the only animal that is more annoying live than animated.

Especially at 6:30 am on a Saturday. Though magpies aren't far behind.

uncoveror: Woodpecker peckin' in my back yard,
He pecked so much his pecker got hard.

Is that POTUSA?

as a part time bird nut, that is some great footage. Woudl love to see "us" find the Ivory Bill alive somewhere. Maybe it's in Cuba.

ZAZ: cryinoutloud: No proof of any living ones so far, dammit.
I side with Sibley's rebuttal to the "rediscovery."
They had an Ivory-billed video running when I went to the Lab of Ornithology building in Sapsucker Woods. It would be nice if the bird existed, but I don't believe it.

It was probably THE footage that got a lot of people excited about its possible existence a few years ago. But it may have been another type of woodpecker, the video really wasn't that good.

But since I'm one of the people who would have liked to drop everything and go look for it, I think the search is well worth it.

/Then you find only one, and get to watch it die in captivity.

Oh, this is a Mexican Ivory Bill, slightly different.

One of my favorite past times, sitting on my porch listening to the local Pileated hammer away. Sounds like a sledge hammer hitting a tree at 5Hz..

cryinoutloud: Looking at that makes me happy and sad at the same time.

Great minds...

cryinoutloud: But since I'm one of the people who would have liked to drop everything and go look for it, I think the search is well worth it.

I really want to go check the rumors of Thylacines still living in the highlands of West Papua. Probably wouldn't find any, but it would still be an epic journey. And if there were any it would be a HUGE discovery.

If the film's so rare, now that they've seen it can't they make a copy?

Happy Halloween. (new window)

Came expecting the, "too bad they didn't have tripods in 1956," comments, leaving disappointed...

(new window)

Ramona A Stone: Mixed emotions watching that footage...joy at seeing a magnificent bird I've never seen before, and sadness at how we let it die.

Way over 90% of all species that have ever lived are gone. They're extinct, We didn't kill them all. They just disappeared. That's what nature does. They disappear these days at the rate of 25 a day. Let them go gracefully! Leave nature alone! Haven't we done enough?

/Yep, Carlin has an answer for everything.
//Just like XKCD.