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Show Dotson attends Falcon Recovery Meet A Soul hern Utah Slate College zoologist is attending at-tending an American Peregrine Falcon Recovery Plan Meeting this week in Denver. Richard A. Dotson, a SUSC faculty member since l'JVl is participating in the January 24-20 meeting on the invitation of the Federal Fish and Wildlife Service, coi 1 1 e rence spon sors . "Because SUSC is centrally cen-trally located in areas where peregrine falcons have nested in the past and may be nesting at the present, time, we feel that the SUSC Life Science Department may be able to play a vital role in the research necessary to implement the proposed recovery plan," Dotson said. The peregrine was placed on the endangered list in the early 10's. According to Dotson, the bird of prey was fairly abundant in the western part of the United States until the 1950's when several factors combined to cause a great reduction of the bird population. "The reason most emphasized em-phasized for the population decline is the use of chlorinated hydrocarbons such as DDT. Studies show that such pesticides reduce the thickness of the egg shells of these birds and cause a disturbance in their behavior cycles," Dotson said. A second major factor in the decrease of the peregrine population is disturbance by man, cuased by the activities of an in-creasing in-creasing human population," he said. The recovery plan for the peregrine includes a proposal to rear the falcons in captivity and to reintroduce rein-troduce them into previously inhabited areas. "Knowledge has increased enough in the past few years to make this idea good possibility," the SUSC zoologist said, "between 1942 and 1970, only seven peregrines were raised in captivity. In 1977 alone, 153 birds were raised outside their natural environment." Alcohol related problems are becoming outrageous and alarming in the state of Uath. In just two years time, alcohol related fatalities have increased 7 percent in Utah according to the Utah Safety Council. Young drivers between the age of 16-24 account for 44 percent of all fatalities and most of these young drivers are males. Utah State PTA, concerned con-cerned about the increasing number of fatalities and the destructiveness of abusive drinking, is sponsoring an "Alcohol Awareness Week", which began Monday and will continue through the 28th. The theme of the project this year and for the past three years is "No Way Will Kids Stop Drinking and Abusing Alcohol Until Adults Do." Research shows that parents who abuse alcohol are more likely to rear children who abuse alcohol. Children are more influenced in-fluenced by what their parents do than by what their parents tell them. PTA units throughout the state have encouraged principals to urge teachers to do something in the ! classroom during this week. We have asked radio stations within the state to allow some of their public service time for alcohol education spot announcements. an-nouncements. Television stations are supporting the state-wide project by airing three Alcohol Education Public Spot Announcements that have been produced here in the state with the help of the State Board of Education and the Division of Alcoholism and Drugs. State PTA and the Division of Alcoholism and Drugs spoasored a video cassette Alcohol Education Public Spot Announcement contest among the High Schools in Utah. Highland High School came up with two winners and Spanish Fork High School with one. The scripts were written by students of these schools. It is a psychological approach or a peer group approach from student to student. The entire "Alcohol Education Awareness Week" is aimed at young people in the State because alcohol is the number one drug choice among teenagers. teen-agers. It is no heroin, amphetamines, am-phetamines, or Marijuana -it's alcohol! |