NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says experts disagree strongly about whether ivory-billed woodpeckers are extinct, and it’s putting off a final decision on the question to review information.
The bird with a 30-inch wingspan and a high, nasal call was among 23 animals the agency said last year it was planning to declare extinct.
On Wednesday, it announced a six-month delay for a decision on the ivory-billed woodpecker.
It also is reopening public comment for one month, and the agency is looking for new photos or videos that are so clear that independent observers all agree they show the birds.
According to a 2005 NPR/National Geographic Radio Expeditions story, a group of wildlife scientists reported seven firm sightings of the bird in central Arkansas at that time.
The Associated Press – Image: Wikicommons – Ivory-Billed Woodpecker by Arthur A. Allen 1935 Photo / Jerry A. Payne Watercolor
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