Campephilus principalis
The Ivory-billed Woodpecker, Campephilus principalis, is a majestic and enigmatic member of the woodpecker family, Picidae, renowned for its striking appearance and the enduring mystery surrounding its existence. Reaching an impressive length of 50-53 cm (20-21 inches) with a wingspan of 76-80 cm (30-31.5 inches) and weighing 450-570 g (16-20 oz), it is one of the largest woodpeckers in the world, surpassed only by its close relative, the Imperial Woodpecker. Its plumage is a glossy, iridesce...
This species historically thrived in vast tracts of mature, old-growth lowland forests, including bottomland hardwood swamps and extensive pine forests, characterized by an abundance of large dead and dying trees for foraging and nesting.
Primarily insectivorous, their diet consists almost exclusively of the large larvae of wood-boring beetles, particularly cerambycid and buprestid beetles, extracted by peeling bark from dead trees. They occasionally consume some seeds and fruits.
Ivory-billed Woodpeckers are diurnal, typically spending their days foraging and retreating to excavated tree cavities for roosting at night. Their most remarkable foraging strategy involves peeling large sheets of bark from dead or dying trees, using their powerful bills to expose and extract be...
Historically, the Ivory-billed Woodpecker ranged across the vast bottomland hardwood and pine forests of the southeastern United States, from eastern North Carolina west to eastern Texas, and north to parts of Oklahoma, Missouri, Kentucky, and Illinois, extending south throughout Florida. A disti...
Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct)
- Often referred to as the 'Lord God Bird' or 'Good God Bird' due to the exclamations of those who witnessed its stunning appearance. - It is the largest woodpecker native to North America, and the second largest in the world, only smaller than its close relative, the Imperial Woodpecker. - Its m...