Frank, the Persian Gulf, and particularly Kuwait, sustained major damage
during the Gulf War. A large part of it was purposefully covered by
petroleum by Iraqi troops, for reasons that I have never understood fully.
 
Kim Hutsell's remarks are to the point. If Conchlers really want to make a
difference, then compose a fact sheet for the COA website, and make sure
that local conservationists see and understand it. Include photos of
beaches (and dead and living mollusks) before and after beach
renourishment, development, etc., and compare it with a shell collector in
a sunhat and a small bag of shells. The captions should be simple and to
the point, but the text should be more complete. Include documentation, or
at least further reading, and the "further reading" should be from more
than one kind of source, i.e., some should be scientific, some from
Smithsonian or Natural History magazines, some from local newspapers, etc.
But no assertions should be made that can't be backed up.
 
A trifold leaflet, suitable for mailing in a legal envelope, could reach
those who do not see the website.
 
One form of presentation is the "Common Myths about Molluscan Decline"
approach, with common myths in boldface, and refuted one by one. This is
relatively easy to write.
 
Another is the "COA is Concerned about Molluscan Decline" approach, which I
personally prefer. "COA members are more concerned than the average person
about the health of mollusk populations. Here's the problem, these are the
probable causes, and this is what we propose for solving the problem." Huh,
I sound like an engineer. A section on the scientific uses of shell
collecting wouldn't hurt.
 
Anyway. This kind of thing isn't my forte, but I'd be willing to
edit/proofread/make suggestions on copy written by others. And someone out
there has to have photos or slides that could be scanned for illustrations.
 
Andrew K. Rindsberg
Geological Survey of Alabama