Beth DeHaas wrote: >Have you ever thought of inviting >your local representative to the next meeting of your shell club? And Howard S. Roux replied, Beth and other Conch-lers, The Naples Shell Club tried that inviting both our local representative and the Director of the Conservancy of Southwest Florida to a meeting along with Carole Marshall. Invitations were mailed six weeks in advance. Our local representative replied three weeks AFTER the meeting date that he had prior commitments. The Conservancy has yet to reply - almost two years - not that I expect one now. However, they are the proponents of a total live shell collecting ban in Collier County, Florida. So, in short, we tried, and it didn't work. The director even agreed earlier to talk to me about live collecting and never followed through despite several calls and messages. Ooh, tough room, Howard. Don't give up the effort now. Here are some other strategies to try: 1. Bypass them. Contact other local and regional conservation organizations. 2. Lecture at schools (grass-roots work that may yield good results in a few years) 3. Offer to take the local politicians and environmentalists on a field trip, including a fine meal. You'd be surprised how responsive people can be during a relaxing outing. Don't invite the politicians and the environmentalists to the same field trip, though. And don't ever give up the moral high ground to the birdwatchers. Shellers provide a valuable service to environmental science by documenting species. Keep pointing to websites that include lists of local species compiled by concerned, environmentally aware conchologists, and compare them to the Christmas Bird Count. If a local list hasn't been compiled yet, by all means get the club to start one. Remember that it won't have much impact unless it is published. Andrew K. Rindsberg Geological Survey of Alabama