Michael DiGiorgio has painted ivorybills into photographs in order to bring to life four of the 2006 sightings. The February 2 sighting was about a half mile from the hot zone, where I had most of the other sightings and obtained the video. The bird flushed from near the bank and flew into the woods. I got my binoculars on it for a few seconds, clearly saw the white trailing edge of the right wing, and noticed the right dorsal stripe and all-dark head. The photo of the site was taken immediately after the sighting.



The February 16 sighting was the first one in the hot zone. I was quietly drifting downstream and came upon an ivorybill that flushed from close range on the bank. This was the most spectacular sighting. The light conditions were excellent, and I saw the brilliant white trailing edges that nearly met in the middle as the bird flew directly away and into the woods on rapidly beating wings. Late that afternoon, I staked out the area and heard three kents that provoked a stern territorial call from a pileated. Witnessing that interaction between the species was every bit as exciting as the sighting. The photos of this site and the other two sites that follow were not taken on the same days as the sightings.



The second of the three sightings on February 17 was nearly as spectacular as the sighting of the previous day. The light conditions were excellent, and the bird flew low across the water directly ahead as I drifted downstream. The bird was banked slightly in my direction, which gave me a clear view across the dorsal surfaces of both wings.



While paddling upstream on February 20, I came upon an ivorybill perched on the side of a snag on the bank. In the poor light on that overcast morning, I was initially unable to make out field marks, but I instantly knew it was an ivorybill based on the posture and movements. I saw the white trailing edges as the bird flew to the left.