OUTDOOR CORNER: FOND MEMORIES OF AN IVORY-BILL WOODPECKER

I remember the day that I became extinct. Oh, I know that sounds odd, but it is true. Woodpeckers have wonderful memories and I assure you that I recall that event, with great detail. First, let me introduce myself. People called my kind of woodpecker the "Ivory- bill." I suppose to them our white bills were the most distinctive thing about us. I would have thought our extreme size, contrasting black and white colors, or bright red crest would merit some distinction. But, alas, the bill is what we are known for the best.

My ancestors lived in cypress swamps and sloughs. The view from my nest revealed a lushly vegetated swamp. My home was an ancient cypress tree and it sheltered me from the wind and the rain. But it seldom gave much relief from the heat and humidity! That cypress tree was the center of my world. From there I would fly in up to a mile and half in any direction searching the swamp for food. Ivory-bills were able to fly as far from the nest as they wanted to in a day and never could find an end to the swamp.

An Ivory-bill such as myself would look for a very special beetle larvae. This beetle was very specific as to where it would feed. Therefore, I was very specific as to where I would search for food. You might say that my kind were very picky eaters because these beetles only occurred on freshly dying Cypress trees. Not to worry though, a large swamp had plenty of territory in which to look for dying trees that might hide Ivory-bill food. My biggest worry was a small swamp with a limited number of dead trees.

This leads me to the day I became extinct. As I said, my ancestors were able to fly tirelessly and never see an end to the swamp. But by the time I was born my parents were finding an end to the available swamps. These swamps were being replaced by fields, roads, towns, railroads and farms.

Food became difficult to find. As my species became rare I began to wonder if the day would come when food was too hard to find. Oh sure, swamps still existed, but they were now becoming too small for our needs. Flying to another swamp was out of the question. We had no idea where another swamp was located or if it was even big enough!

Our numbers slowly sank until eventually I found only one available mate. I called until I was hoarse and finally located the remaining female. We raised a small clutch with no success. Our young died before they could fly, due to lack of food; we just could not feed them.

The next year I tried to find my mate, hoping conditions would be better for raising young. I called and called, but no one answered. It was a cloudy, misty day on which I realized I was the last of my kind. Your calendar would mark it as the decade of the 1980's. Although I was still alive, I knew that my lineage was extinct. For without a mate there would be no more Ivory-bills. Yes, I remember that day very clearly. I was extinct.

I suppose that the most discouraging thing was that my story is not an isolated one.

Many animals have lost habitat and find it harder and harder to have their needs met. These animals live in swamps and many other types of habitats.

As you discuss the end of this century and millennium, please remember that the end has come for many species in this century. Ivory-bill Woodpeckers are just one of the many that can no longer be found. People have begun to realize habitat is the most important thing for any species to survive, not just animals with "picky tastes."

Although my extinction is certain I hope that other species do not share my fate.

Swamps of present day Southeast Missouri were a former home to my kind. Please learn from my extinction. Living things need habitat to exist; without it they cannot survive.

Make the actions that brought about my extinction, a thing of the past. Make the next millennium a new start by protecting and conserving habitat. Do this and you will not have to lose another species like the Ivory-bill.

Sincerely, The last Ivory-bill Woodpecker.

A.J. Hendershott is an education consultant with the Missouri Department of Conservation.