The American Museum of Natural History houses the largest collection of bird specimens in the world. Representing all continents and nearly 99 percent of avian species, these specimens help researchers study the evolutionary history of birds and patterns of geographic variation. In the video below, Department of Ornithology Collections Manager Paul Sweet offers a behind-the-scenes look at the collection and its role in scientific research and conservation.

Six years ago this spring, an announcement sent waves of excitement among birders and wildlife enthusiasts: an Ivory-billed Woodpecker, Campephilus principalis, generally thought to be extinct, had been sighted in an Arkansas swamp by a team of investigators. A blurry video of the large bird in flight seemed to provide supporting evidence.

Still, proof of the bird’s existence was not airtight. Subsequent visits, as well as audio and video recordings in the area, yielded no definitive results. The video showed an image that might have been that of a similar species, the Pileated Woodpecker. Both species have black and white wings, but with different patterns that are visible when the wings are extended in flight. While researchers fanned out to look for evidence in Arkansas, at the Museum, ornithologists turned to the collections to examine the wings.