Land Snails and Slugs of the Pacific Northwest

Acknowledgments

7 Acknowledgments T. BURKE My study of the inland mollusks of the Pacific Northwest over the past 35 years has been incidental to my employment as a wildlife biologist. During that time, I have communicated with many individuals regarding the molluscan taxa and have consulted with many agency personnel and consultants regarding specific questions. Every question and every specimen sent to me has provided a learning experience . Personnel of the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife who provided specimens and site information are too numerous to list, but I gratefully acknowledge the contributions from each. This work was initiated under a Challenge Cost-Share Agreement and associated contracts with the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management , Oregon State Office, Spokane District, Spokane, Washington. The continued efforts of Neal Hedges and Kelli Van Norman of those offices kept the project on track, and their support is greatly appreciated. Others with whom I worked particularly closely include Dr. Joseph Furnish, Nancy Duncan, Stephen Dowlan, Dr. John Applegarth, Roger Monthy, Ted Weasma, Darby Hansen, Jo Ellen Richards, Patty Garvey-Darda, Heather Murphy , Susan Piper, Tom Kogut, Mitch Wainwright, Judy Murray-Hoder, Brigitte Ranne, Jim Baugh, John Musser, and Erik Ellis. Paul Hendricks provided invaluable information on Montana mollusks and their distribution, as well as shells to photograph. Casey Richart provided information acquired through his many invertebrate surveys and studies. My special thanks to contract administrators and assistants on various mollusk projects: Neal Hedges, Barb Behan, Joan Ziegltrum, Dale Swedberg, Darci Rivers Pankratz, and Sarina Jepsen. The late Dr. Terrence Frest of Deixis Consultants lent his expertise in consulting on disjunct populations and undescribed species. He and his colleague Edward Johannes provided specimens and locations for specific taxa and invaluable information from their experience, as well as copies of many reports from their work. Mr. Bill Leonard, whose skill and patience with the camera provided the photographs used to illustrate the species, the figures of shell characteristics, and the 8 LAND SNAILS AND SLUGS OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST slugs for this work, also lent his invaluable knowledge acquired through his study of slugs. Special thanks are due to Dr. Barry Roth and Dr. Timothy Pearce for their reviews of the manuscript and their many comments and suggestions for its improvement . I also wish to thank the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia for permission to use many quotes and citations from Pilsbry’s monographs, Land Mollusca of North America (North of Mexico). Finally, my wife Carol deserves special recognition for her patience as I worked many long days and nights and for her assistance in reviewing the manuscript. I also thank the doctors and nurses of Providence St. Peter Hospital and The Regional Hospital for their patience and indulgence of me as for months I sat by Carol’s bed, often working on my laptop and always praying for her recovery from leukemia and the drastic side effects of chemotherapy; thanks to God that she is still with me. Acknowledgments W. LEONARD As a young man I had the incredible good fortune to take a class from acclaimed nature photographers Larry West and John Shaw. Over the past three decades Larry has unselfishly shared macrophotography techniques that he personally pioneered , techniques that enabled me to make the photographs in this book. I am likewise deeply indebted to Tim Pearce, Lyle Chichester, and Tom Wilke for generously sharing their precious time, knowledge, and technical expertise. I also thank my friends and collecting companions Jim Baugh, Casey Richart, Steve Herman, Brad Moon, Kristiina Ovaska, Bob Storm, Kelley Jorgensen, and Joan Ziegltrum; and, especially, my family—Vicki, Nick, and Megan, for their companionship, patience , and assistance on many road trips around the PNW. Without their support, my contribution to this book would not have been possible. Lastly, I thank Tom Burke for opening my eyes to the diversity of mollusks in my adopted home—the Pacific Northwest. ...