S2 Page 19

Collector: Grinnell - 1925
Location: Lassen Section (Brokeoff Mt.)
Date: June 17, 1925
Page Number: 2474

Then down over "bald" hills and ridges to here,
where the Timber begins again. This "baldness" of the
mountains of middle altitude in this section of
the Sierras is due to their dense and continuous
clothure of chaparral. This makes them look at a
distance as tho they were covered with green grass.
The chaparral here (6000-6500) consists of the big
shiny-leafed ceanothus velutinus, the thorny ceanothus
condulatus, arctostaphylos patula (pure growths in places),
the dwarfed arctostaphylos nevadensis here at its lowest
limit and growing up to two feet high, and tracts
of red cherry.
4:15 p.m. - At about 6700 ft.; at least there, maybe a
family, of Blue-fronted Jays, which species I didn't
check on the way up; as also a pair of solicitous
Red-breasted Sapsuckers. This is near the bottom of a
timbered ravine. A red fir is abundantly punctured
from about 4 to 12 feet up, and bleeding - probably
the work of this sapsucker.
4:30 p.m. - Just had a "great kick": within 50 feet
in front of us there suddenly appeared a female Sierra
Grouse and simultaneously she whistled again and
again, a rather piercing squall, almost; then she began
to intersperse these startling (terrifying?) notes with
clucks - kirk, kirk, kirk, 6 to 10 in succession.
When we ran up, she flew up 80 feet or so
into a red fir, now clucking at quarter-minute
intervals. Almost at the instant the hen