| 2001 search: No confirmation, only excitement There were two moments during the 2001 search that caused some panic within. Moments where things just seem to happen all too fast and you lose track of what is going on around you. Keep in my that we never did see or confirm in any way the existence of the Ivorybill, but the stories will last forever. The possibilty remains. . The first began around midday on February 17th 2001 while walking through the section where David Kullivan saw the birds on April 1st 1999. Our group consisted of 4 people - Dave, Roger and Diane (from Dayton, Ohio) and myself (from Montreal). Dave and I split from the other two as we thought it would be more efficient to go 2 by 2. Dave and I had been walking for some time with strides of monotony when suddenly a large - actually very large, blackish bird flew silently from a tree in front of us. I must have flown for over 100 yards because we could not see it land. Nevertheless it was large and black and we had not seen a Pileated to that point. It grabbed our attention. Our eyes became fixed on that foggy area where we thought it landed. With every footstep another tree got in the way and we worried that as the seconds ticked away our chances of finding the bird would diminish. We walked, and walked, and walked in a circle. Never saw it again. The sight of the large black bird flying against the light brown backdrop of the forest still is fresh in my mind today. 99.9% sure it was a Pileated, but if it wasn't there is only one other thing it could have been. But probably not enough white on the wings to have warranted any real commotion. So we kept calm about it all. The second instant began in the early afternoon on February 18th 2001, as Mary Scott reports in her photo essay. Our team of 4 was together this time, using the sit and wait technique. We were quite tired having walked through difficult terrain and even some quick-sand of a partially dried-out bayou. It was rough going; we were beginning to think that the Ivory-billed Woodpecker did not want us to find it, having chosen some of the most remote, punishing and inhospitable terrain in the United States to make its home. Dave and I heard some very faint sounds come from several hundred yards in front of us. We had been used to the common bird sounds of the area by now and this seemed to catch our attention. It sounded like a few geese - a high pitched, nasal honk - only not a honk, and not geese. It was in the forest. The sound reminded us of the tape we had been playing sporadically. We looked at each other, then at the others. I still am not sure if the Roger and Diane heard anything and have not talked about the instant with them since that day. Yet when I think back to the journey into the Pearl, this is another of those moments that strikes out at me. A possibility - and only that. I don't have any idea what else it could have been but we must let it go. It will never be confirmed. A moment of excitement that keeps alive the drive to search on. |
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