Greatest hoaxes in birding history

With the ever increasing likelihood that the Rainsong Ivory-billed Woodpecker or, as I’ve dubbed it, IBWOgate is a complete hoax, I began to wonder about the great hoaxes in birding history. There seems to be a multitude of reasons for the birding hoax, but they seem to fall into four broad categories;

• Self-aggrandizement through finding rarities or becoming a “famous” birder
• A very bad joke on fellow birders
• Mistaken IDs by well-meaning and, many cases, competent birders
• And the worst, for profit

One of latest cases of self-aggrandizement comes in the form of a grainy image of an apparent Steller’s Eider off the of North Wales, UK. Apparently, this birder turned golfer (why in the hell would one do that?) spotted the sea duck while, you guessed it, golfing. He managed to take a blurry image has to prove his sighting. The problem – no one else was able to find the bird, and worse, the photo seems to come from a photographer from Scandinavia. I wonder if he was flogged with a golf club by the twitchers?

In the bad joke department, we have the Siberian Accentor from North East Derbyshire, UK. It seems this bloke put out a model of an Accentor as a joke on his mate. The problem – other birders heard about the Siberian Accentor and rushed to its location. Some even claimed to have seen it and the news made the British publication Birding World. The hoax was revealed when the jokester attempted a second ruse, only this time he was busted and had his birding privileges revoked. Heck, I am guilty of this to lesser extent. After a day of birding, I reported my sightings on the Montana Online Birders group. I mentioned that I saw a Montana Trogon, or more commonly known as the Black-billed Magpie. I had people asking me, “Trogon really?” and “Where’s the trogon?”. It’s a joke, people. Relax.

The hoax that isn’t a hoax. The mistaken identification of a common species as something rare. Here’s the scenario. Good birders make mistakes, and we all do it, so no pointing fingers here. The misidentified bird becomes a hot rarity, and folks rushed to see this once in a lifetime bird. Once the birding community accepts the mis-ID, then everyone “sees” the rarity. The best example of this phenomenon was the supposed Smith’s Longspur in California in the late 70s. The bird was observed by many folks who were good birders, and they eliminated the possibilities one by one. Horned Lark – are you kidding? Lesser Short-toed Lark – maybe, but nope. Eurasian Skylark – definitely not. Smith’s Longspur – bingo! The problem the bird turned out to be, drum roll please, an Eurasian Skylark, which was a rarity in its own right as California’s first documented visit from this species. But heck, it was California in the Seventies, wild times, wild times.

Now for the final and most insidious category, the hoax for profit. With some organizations offering rewards for documentation or information about endangered species, there is a temptation to defraud by certain individuals. With IBWOgate, I am beginning to wonder if this is not the case with Rainsong Ivory-billed Woodpecker. I am just suspicious, not making accusations or anything. But, with CLO offering a substantial cash prize for an Ivory-billed Woodpecker, there is fertile bed for the seeds of a hoax.