DECATUR - Mallory Neese began working as an intern at a wildlife rescue clinic so she could add a bit of volunteer experience to her resumé to compete for one of the relatively few spots at a veterinary college.

When Neese, 22, completed her internship, she also added a large, unique feather to her hat.

Neese, who will complete her undergraduate studies at Millikin University next month, became the chief author of a groundbreaking study that could save the lives of many birds and increase understanding of how their development affects the environment.

When she began working at the Illinois Raptor Center early last year, she performed mostly menial duties such as sweeping and feeding injured birds.

But Neese had much more to offer.

For an ecology class, taught by biology professor David Horn, she worked on a survey of songbirds colliding with windows, Project Prevent Collisions.

"Mallory was instrumental in getting that off the ground," Horn said.

She also possessed advanced computer skills, developed partly through serving as the editor of her high school yearbook.

Jane Seitz, executive director of the center, thought Neese might be just the one to sort through years of information stored at the clinic that had been collecting dust.

"Jane kept saying: We have all this raptor data around," Neese recalled.

When Neese told Horn, a renowned ornithologist, that there was this enormous storehouse of information, based on almost 1,000 raptor admissions to the center over a 12-year period, he got excited.

"Every time I saw Mallory, I asked her about that large data set," Horn recalled.

Believing the information could significantly increase the body of knowledge on raptor population trends, Horn helped Neese obtain an undergraduate fellowship, a grant to help her analyze the data.

Neese wanted to investigate the causes of injuries. Horn wanted to discover how much various raptor species were increasing or decreasing. They decided to do both.

The study Neese recently completed showed that vehicle accidents are the No. 1 human cause of injuries to owls.

Horn said the study could be instrumental in preventing injuries to owls, which fly close to the ground while hunting. He believes changes in managing tall grass near roadways might provide a partial solution.

Neese managed to squeeze the Herculean task of analyzing data into her already overloaded schedule.

She is a full-time student - taking 23 credit hours one semester - who also was consumed with filling out lengthy veterinary school applications. In her spare time, Neese was a cheerleader, performing at Millikin football and basketball games and practicing three times each week.

Perhaps that is how she came by her empathy for birds.

"I'm the girl they toss up into the air," Neese said.

The study she produced has turned up several findings, including evidence of the decline of the screech owl, a tiny bird that hides so well it does not turn up in an extensive nationwide bird survey.

Neese, who is partial to screech owls, which she calls "adorable," said there is no record of them in Illinois.

"Now we have a wonderful chart on screech owls," Nuzzo said.

Neese also discovered that Cooper's hawks, small hawks that live in forests, have increased in number in recent years.

"We noticed that a long time ago but had nothing to substantiate it," Nuzzo said.

Seitz added, "This is the first time we've had a panoramic view of what we've done. Someone else can use it, and it can be good information."

Horn said raptors - predatory bird species including hawks, owls, eagles and falcons - are important in predicting the environmental health of an area because they are on top of the food chain.

"The data the Illinois Raptor Center gathered is useful to predict the environmental health of hawk and owl populations," Horn said. "Mallory's research shows a significant drop in raptor population after 2002, when West Nile virus swept through Central Illinois. It shows that the raptor center data does speak to the environmental health of the surrounding landscape.

"The work Mallory did can serve as a model for other rehabilitation centers throughout the country. If each center did that, an understanding of raptors would increase significantly. The work Mallory is doing here is quite unique."

Horn believes his prize student's work will be published in a national scientific journal, adding it is unusual for an undergraduate to produce work of this caliber.

"Mallory's work serves as a model for undergraduate research," Horn said. "Every step of the way, she has done an excellent job."

When Neese began her college career, she was planning to become a physician. But after she brought a steady stream of stray animals into her rural home near Quincy, her mother suggested she might become a veterinarian.

Neese, who was recently accepted to the U of I Veterinarian College, plans to make a career of treating dogs and cats while working with wildlife as a sideline. Horn would like to see her also stay on the research track.

"From start to finish, Mallory is the best research student I've worked with," the professor said. "She has a great future ahead of her."

Huey Freeman can be reached at hfreeman@herald-review.com or 421-6985.