18 May 1999
 
     In 1993 we spent a month working for a state resource agency on the
Elkhorn River in northeastern Nebraska.   Large Cannabis plants grew
everywhere, but unionids were scarce at most of the 120+ sites we sampled.
Many of the secondary roads were in rugged condition so we often drove slowly
in mostly sparsely populated areas.  One day while driving on a road that was
like an old-fashioned washboard, a state trooper pulled us over because we
were driving TOO slow, with an out of state license on my van (my husband and
2 other men were with me).
   Even after I showed the trooper letters from the agency, and state and
federal collecting permits, he was skeptical, so he asked if we had collected
any shells that day.  Fortunately we had collected some dead shells which I
showed him.  Then he started to check out the rest of the van which was of
course full of all types of field gear.  He saw the back of the van was full
to the roof, so finally he decided we didn't have any contraband plants.  I
told him where our next sampling site would be in case he wanted to follow
us. I don't know what we'd have done if we hadn't collected any mussels that
day.
     We all had a good laugh over the whole incident but agreed that the
trooper got a bit carried away considering the agency documentation we had.
Marian E Havlik
Malacological Consultants
1603 Mississippi Street
La Crosse Wisconsin 54601-4969 USA
email: [log in to unmask]
Phone/Fax: 608-782-7958