It would be nice if they were still around, but I don't think so. But if they were anywhere it would be behind the scenes in San Diego.
There have been sightings over the last century. More than likely the bird is extinct, but it certainly wouldn't be the first "extinct" animal to be rediscovered after being written off.
I guess if any extinct species is going to be rediscovered, the ivory-billied woodpecker would be one of the better candidates. They look so similar to surviving woodpecker species in the same area that if someone saw one alive, they probably wouldn't know it, and small species are better at hiding than big ones. It's more like extinct than not, but the possibility exists.
I do remain skeptical in this case, I am afraid ... there is as TMO eluded to surviving like woodpecker species that to do untrained eye look like the real bird. Also, no credible documented evidence for it by experts both direct or indirect. I would very much like to be proven wrong though ...!
Yeah, the appearance thing plays both ways here. Someone could easily mistake a pileated woodpecker for an ivory-billed and then go nuts about it, which I'm sure is the cause of sightings.
