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We know that some of the common rodents have cycles of abundance. 
Perhaps your owl pellet records will show such fluctuations. Whether 
you study owl pellets for scientific purposes or just for fun, you are bound 
to learn much about owls and their habits. You will learn about the small 
mammals of your community, and to your outings you will have added 
a new interest. 
There is a sad sequel to this story. We returned to the cemetery year 
after year and found less owls each time, Sometimes on hikes in that vicinity 
we would discover a dead owl, the victim of some gunner’s “skill.” In 
January, 1958, I went back to examine the pine grove before giving the 
talk which was the basis for this article. There was no evidence of owls 
roosting there this past winter and perhaps longer, for there were no owls 
and no pellets to be found. 
525 South Vine Street, Arthur, Illinois 
Ed. Note: Mrs. McKinney’s talk on owl pellets and the exhibit by Jack 
Downs were presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society this spring 
in Decatur, We felt that her message was interesting enough to warrant 
reprinting for the benefit of the members who were unable to attend. 
eh te Ty, 
Outdoor Conservation Conference 
THE NATURAL RESOURCES COUNCIL of Illinois will hold its Fifth Annual 
Outdoor Conservation Conference at the Lorado Taft Campus at Oregon, 
Ill., on October 10-11-12, 1958. The theme of the conference will be 
“Problems of Roadsides and Pesticides.” 
Among the highlights of the statewide meeting of outdoor conservation 
clubs will be two round table discussions. One will concern itself with the 
use of pesticides and their injurious effects on wildlife and birdlife; the 
second will spotlight the new federal highway law and effects of highway 
construction on park land, plus the effect of the new billboard control law 
and its relation to state legislation. 
The status of the prairie chicken in Illinois, the decline of the Bald 
Eagle, the battle for the Indiana Dunes National Monument, and the 
recognition that recreation in the United States is big business will be 
among other topics that will enliven the meeting. The campus is a 66-acre 
tract that overlooks the Rock River — an area of rolling hills, deep ravines 
and thick woods; it is only ten miles from White Pines State Park. Registra- 
tion fee for observers is but 50 cents. For further information, contact 
Elton Fawks, Chairman, N.R.C.I., Box 112, R.R. 1, East Moline, III. 
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