SOUND recordings have convinced sceptics that a pair of ivory-billed woodpeckers survive in the White river area of Arkansas.
The reported rediscovery of the striking but shy bird made headlines at the end of April because it had not been seen in the US for more than 60 years. However, careful examination of blurry videotapes and photographs failed to convince Richard Prum, an ornithologist at Yale University, that the spotters had found the right bird. Prum and two colleagues drafted a paper warning that the claims of rediscovery might be mistaken.
But Prum changed his tune when he heard audio…
