IVORY-BILLED WOODPECKER
392. Campephilus principalis. 20 inches
Male with a scarlet crest, female with a black one.
These are the largest and most rare of the Woodpeckers found within our borders. Their decline in numbers is due, to a certain extent, to the killing of them because of their size and beauty, but chiefly on account of cutting off of a great deal of the heavy timber where they nest. They are very powerful birds and often scale the bark off the greater portion of a tree in search for insects and grubs, while they will bore into the heart of a living tree to make their home.
Note.—A shrill two-syllabled shriek or whistle.
Nest.—In holes of large trees in impenetrable swamps. On the chips at the bottom of the cavity, they lay from three to six glossy, pure white eggs (1.45 × 1.00).
Range.—Formerly the South Atlantic States and west to Texas and Indian Territory, but now confined to a few isolated portions of Florida and, possibly, Indian Territory.
