The Mysterious Fate of a Vanished Bird Captured on Grainy Video.

A new study in the journal Ecology and Evolution presents evidence suggesting the "intermittent but repeated presence" of ivory-billed woodpeckers in a Louisiana swamp forest, despite the last widely accepted sighting being in 1944. However, some experts remain unconvinced due to poor video quality and the difficulty of distinguishing the species from similar-looking woodpeckers. Federal wildlife officials have proposed declaring the species extinct, but removing federal protection could be detrimental to any remaining birds. The debate continues over whether limited conservation funds should be spent on searching for the elusive bird.