More Choctawhatchee birds (as always, click to enlarge)

Finally, a diagnostic photograph of a Pileated Woodpecker! I've probably seen PIWOs 150 times now in the Choctawhatchee River system, and have heard them countless other times. If the IBWO truly is extinct, then this is the largest woodpecker species in the US. It bears a few superficial similarities to IBWOs, though a trained eye should be able to sort out even the most cursory glimpse of a large woodpecker in a few seconds. Nonetheless, trying to get a snap of a PIWO provides excellent practice for that moment if/when the IBWO does come visiting, and also serves to illustrate how difficult it will be to get that sharp, irrefutable IBWO photo. After all, if I can only get one set of diagnostic PIWO photos per 150 sightings....

Another shot of the same, beautiful, red-crested Pileated Woodpecker.

A Barred Owl. We hear 'em all the time, but see them less often.

Another Barred Owl.

Click and you shall see a rusty-tailed Hermit Thrush.

Eastern Phoebe. These cute tail-waggers are ubiquitous on the Choc.

A camp visitor....

This opossum came into camp one night to gnaw on some discarded catfish bones. Cute l'il feller, ain't he?

Another Choctawhatchee update

Hello!

I'm sorry for not updating this more frequently. I think I've explained in previous posts that I am in the woods without Internet access for 6 to 7 days at a time, and then rotate out for two. When I cycle out, my first priorities are shaving, showering (usually multiple times!), getting a good meal (though we do eat well in camp), laundering my clothes, shopping for the next rotation in, checking my email, and opening letters, packages, and bills. You get the picture.

It was another week without any suggestive "detections," though I did find some interesting bark scaling on a Tupelo tree close to camp. A couple of parties in my study area heard and recorded some kent notes that resemble the vocalizations of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, though without a corroborative sighting or photo we can't be sure what the sources of the noises were. One set in particular, however, sounded really interesting, and for the next few days may have tilted me a millimeter or so towards the believing side of the fence of IBWO agnosticism.

It has been cold and wet out there. Temperatures sometimes dip to the low 20s at night. Nonetheless, we're plugging away, covering a lot of ground in our efforts to find promising nesting/roosting cavities and foraging signs.

I'm enjoying other aspects of life out there. I've kayaked through some beautiful wooded areas and waded through some dark, impressive cypress swamps. Plus, the camaraderie is excellent. The Cornell University mobile swat team has been stationed in our camp, and I've picked their brains for nuggets of expertise on large woodpecker behavior.

Interesting birds are plentiful. I've seen a few Yellow-throated Warblers, and their more abundant cousins the Yellow-rumped Warblers have been engaging in frenetic courtship behavior in the forest. It's been too cold, though, for reptile sightings. I'll put up a wildlife photo post momentarily.