Transcribing the field notes of the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology

Collector: Grinnell - 1925 Location: Lassen Section (Mineral) Date: June 17, 1925 Page Number: 2471

then by the man on foot following the telephone wire, as we have done. We are now leveling at about 8000 ft., close to the south base of Brokeoff proper. We are in plain view of the lookout house on the summit, not yet occupied this year. The snow is abundant all about us, vastly more of it than last May at the same level. Indeed we found difficulty in finding a bare place, or a ridge, where we could be dry and avoid the intense glare of the sunlight from the snow. We are in high Canadian zone, getting into Hudsonian. The trees close about are red fir (predominantly), mountain pine, and alpine hemlock. The trunks and larger branches of the bigger trees are heavily festooned with a brilliantly yellow-green lichen, betokening much misty weather here. The forest floor appears to be bare save for low mats of arctostaphylos nevadensis on ridges and sunny places. The snow is melted away from the bases of the trees, but lies between the trees in heaps 2 to fully 6 feet deep. There are the usual summer clouds about; the sun beats down hotly, but the air is chilly whenever the sun is covered. I kept pencil census of all birds seen and heard for the five hours, 7-12 (see accompanying sheet). Some arriving here (at 12) till now (12:45) I have noted: Solitaire (one singing extatically among tree-tops, or giving the "barn-door creak" note at spaced intervals, many in slow sequence); Canada Nuthatch (I hear

Collector: Grinnell-1925 Location: Mineral, 4800 ft. Date: June 21 Page Number: 2488

young had begun to hold its mouth open pouting. [Interrupted by camper!] This Fox Sparrow's nest rests on a slanting stem of snow-bush with the proper lacework of fine twigs attached. Near at hand are two large Amelanchier bushes; and overhead are two yellow pines and a fir. In construction the nest is typical - large, with abundant loose basement of large objects, bark pieces, section of sticks, etc., the inner wall of soft bark strips and grasses course in texture, not fine as in towhees.

June 22 7:34 a.m. - With ^^Egmont Rett and ^^Ralph Hoffmann up ridge east of Martin Cr. Fox Sparrow's nest, with 3 young that left nest for good when disturbed, in rather low snow flattened thicket of ceanothus cordulatus, on open forest floor, cedar and yellow pines overhead. Rim 140 ft mm. above ground; nest last less bulky than usual, resting on tangle of ceanothus stems and twigs mixed with yellow pine needles, so that there is really no open space between nest and ground. Nest lining of fine round grasses mostly - no bark strips this time. Young are being lolled (?) off in different direction by both old birds, acting separately. Young have hoarse "chirrup" note, uttered rapidly when they are trotting thru the bushes.

8:15 a.m. - Cassin Vireo's nest: rim 1910 mm. above ground in forking twigs near drooping end of branch of incense cedar over open forest floor on dry ridge top. Male was singing overhead, leading me to the site; [female symbol]

Collector: Grinnell - 1925 Location: Mineral Date: June 22 Page Number: 2492

Mr. Hoffmann shot an adult male, with a bob-tailed young one, of Golden-crowned Kinglet, in a dense group of small fir here on the Forest Service camp ground this afternoon. I saw a Red-shafted Flicker in flight over the tree-tops - not a common species here - in fact, far less seen than the Pileated Woodpecker.

June 23 10:00 a.m. - we have come 2 1/2 miles airline west of camp along side of Battle Creek Meadows, following the old road (see U.S.G.S quadrangle) to a little beyond the old bridge across Battle Creek. Big forest trees, yellow pines, fir, cedars, and sometimes sugar pines, extend down to the edge of the "meadows"; the latter consist of open pasture and also tracts of willows and lodgepole pines. The present highway pretty much parallels the old road to this point but thence goes down the canyon on the north side, to cross it several hundred feet, altitude, lower. At this end of the Meadows, the mountains pinch together, and the creek bottom ^^soon becomes a narrow canyon. Here are aspens, and a few alders. The Meadows are the property of one W. L. Gerber (?), and are fenced; everywhere astride the fences the vegetation is grazed down by the cattle and sheep which go thru [sic] the country or are seen at large over the forest lands; but inside the fences, the vegetation looks fine - not overgrazed - some of the enclosures not yet grazed at all, possibly reserved for hay. Took a 1 1/2 hour census of birds notes from the road near camp to here, as follows:

Collector: Grinnell - 1925 Location: Mineral Date: June 23 Page Number: 2493

Mt. Chickadee (2); Western Tanager (5); Fox Sparrow (2); Chipping Sparrow (18); Hermit Warbler (3); Tolmie Warbler (1); Calaveras Warbler (1); Warbling Vireo (8); Calif. Purple Finch (4); Wood Pewee (13); Lazuli Bunting (3) Pileated Warbler (1); Spotted Sandpiper (2, along sparsely pebbled margins of creek); Traill Flycatcher (1); Yellow Warbler (2); Robin (29+, one seen carrying mud up to nest 50 feet above and on lowermost branch of huge yellow pine); Cassin Vireo (1); Audubon Warbler (7); Blue-fronted Jay (1); Turkey Vulture (2, one circling above vicinity of store (?), and one above woods at this end of the meadow) Brewer Blackbird (1, [female symbol] bathing and preening, as if just off nest); Pine Siskin (1); Ruby-crowned Kinglet (2); Canada Nuthatch (1); Crossbill (1, loud "chup" note heard from tips of yellow pine, given persistently, until bird flew, and also then); Killdeer (2); Meadowlark (2); Sierra Creeper (1); Western Bluebird (2); Western Lark Sparrow (1, [male symbol] singing volubly from well up in yellow pine at edge of meadow); Wright Flycatcher (2); Olive-sided Flycatcher (1); Solitaire (1); Pygmy Nuthatch (2, in different places, in upper parts of large yellow pines); White-headed Woodpecker (2); Modoc Hairy Woodpecker (2); Red-winged Blackbird (1+, heard from willows along stream, far out in meadows); Cassin Purple Finch (2, mating pair).

Total, for 1 1/2 hrs., 8:15-9:45: 38 species, 133 individuals.

1 p.m. Still at west end of Battle Creek Meadows. Have heard a Black-headed Grosbeak singing, and a Red-shafted Flicker. Just saw a Black-tailed Jack Rabbit (Lepus c. californicus) lope up the hill thru the snow bushes, from

MUSEUM OF VERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY

CENSUS SHEET

Locality: Vicinity of Battle Creek Meadows	Nature of Route(zone,fauna, associations):
Date: July 31, 1925	Across meadows and willow
Observer: J. & H.W. Grinnell	bogs, streamside, adjacent ^coniferous woods;
Time in Field: 4 hrs.	Transition and Canadian zones
Approximate no. miles: 7	Weather: clear, warm

Species Hours[arrow symbol pointing right]	8-9	9-10	10-11	11-12		Totals
Unknown	-	3	-	4		7
Western Tanager	8	9	3	8		28
Wright Flycatcher	1	-	-	1		2
Mountain Chickadee	4	3	6	1		14
Warbling Vireo	1	1	0	1		3
Western Robin	6	10	2	6		24
Fox Sparrow	1	0	0	0		1
Wood Pewee	5	8	5	6		24
Canada Nuthatch	1	2	0	0		3

Tolmie Warbler|2|1|0|0|3 Yellow Warbler|1|0|0|1|2 White-headed Woodpecker|1|0|0|0|1 Traill Flycatcher|3|1|0|3|7 Sierra Grouse|1|0|0|0|1 Lazuli Bunting|1|1|0|5|7 Lincoln Sparrow|2|1|0|0|3 Sierra Junco|3|5|2|3|13 Song Sparrow|2|0|0|3|5 Crossbill|1|1|0|0|2 Red-tailed Hawk|1|0|2|3|6 Red-shafted Flicker|1|5|0|1|7 Brewer Blackbird|2|0|0|0|3 Chipping Sparrow|0|7|4|8|19 Audubon Warbler|0|1|4|2|7 Blue-fronted Jay|0|2|1|0|3 Hammond Flycatcher|0|1|1|0|2 Calliope Hummer|0|1|0|0|1 Sierra Creeper|0|0|1|0|1 Lewis Woodpecker|0|0|0|4|4 Pine Siskin|0|0|0|6|6 Green-backed Goldfinch|0|0|0|1|1 California Purple Finch|0|0|0|1|1

TOTALS (hourly and grand)|49|63|31|68|211