THE AUDUBON “BULLETIN 3 
THE ANNUAL MEETING — 1965 
By Mrs. Kenneth Fiske 
The €8th Annual Meeting was also a first — a joint meeting with another 
state society. The IOWA ORNITHOLOGISTS’ UNION hosted the meeting 
held in Davenport, Iowa, May 14-16, and proved their members were mar- 
velous organizers who could deal with last-minute changes provided by 
the mighty Mississippi. It was hard for Illinoisians to realize that some field 
trip sites were closed off by police until the very day of the meeting. We 
cannot give enough credit and thanks to PETER PETERSEN, JR. and his 
cohorts for their excellent planning and gracious hospitality. 
On Friday night an informal reception was held at the Davenport 
Public Museum which gave the Illinois and Iowa people an opportunity 
to become better acquainted with each other and with the beautiful build- 
ing in which all programs were held. Saturday field trips started early, 
with many binocular-bearing enthusiasts assembling before 5:00 a.m. at 
an excellent (and handy) cafeteria. The expert Iowa birders led five dif- 
ferent trips; 122 species were seen. Highlights were a Stilt Sandpiper, a 
Western Sandpiper, and White-eyed Vireos. 
The day’s program began at 10:45 a.m. with 275 in attendance. PETER 
PETERSEN introduced DONALD HEROLD, Director of the Davenport 
Public Museum, which was opened in October 1964. DR. ROBERT VANE, 
president of the I.0.U., welcomed the group. He commented that this was 
their 43rd annual meeting. 
President RAYMOND MOSTEK then spoke for the I.A.S. He emphasized 
that we not only enjoyed observing birds but were also interested in wild- 
life conservation and were seeking to implement words with deeds. ‘“Con- 
servation must compete in the public eye with scores of other social action 
groups,” he said. “To do so, we must engender the same evangelism for 
our cause as others do for theirs.” 
The program continued with a paper by TERRENCE INGRAM, teacher 
and ornithologist from Apple River, on “Winter Movements of Hawks.” 
GERALD KAUFMANN of Dubuque talked on ‘Factors Affecting Marsh 
Bird Populations in Iowa” (muskrats and rainfall produce a cycle of bird 
populations every 7-15 years). 
TURNER NEARING exhibited his slides of African birds. Nearly 250 
species of birds were identified, and a telephoto lens was used for many 
shots. MRS. NEARING’s expert commentary was as interesting as the 
unusual pictures. PETER PETERSEN narrated a fine film of ‘Migrant 
Birds in the Davenport Area,” showing birds he had captured for banding. 
Some viewers found this a good way to learn their birds. 
One of the highlights of the entire weekend was the talk by T. E. 
LUSSELMAN of Quincy. No single person has done more than “Mr. Blue- 
bird” to develop and promote proper nesting boxes for many species rapidly 
declining due to loss of natural nesting sites. He spoke of his early interest 
in birds and nature and told how this “hobby” has taken all his time. 
