Cache River National Wildlife Refuge - Ivory-billed Woodpecker

Ivory-billed Woodpecker

On April 29, 2005, a team from Cornell Lab of Ornithology claimed they had taken a four-second video and recorded audio calls of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, believed extinct for 60 years, in the refuge. The woodpecker has not been seen since and whether it was actually seen in 2005 remains a source of considerable debate. Much of the refuge was closed to the public following the announcement. After further research could not locate the woodpeckers, the refuge was reopened to the public in 2006.