220 ANIMAL LIFE IN THE YOSEMITE 



of Holodiscus was at least seventy-five feet up the steep adjacent slope. 

 Currant and red-elderberry bushes grew nearer than any of the other 

 plants named, but neither had been touched. Evidently the cony exercises 

 some selection in the choice of its food materials. 



When foraging, the Yosemite Cony gets as large an amount of cut 

 greens as it can hold crosswise in its mouth and then carries the bundle 

 to the 'barn.' Often stems of considerable length are transported in this 

 manner, and as the animal moves about, the ends of these stems trail along 

 beside or behind him. Many of the pieces found in the hay piles were over 

 a foot in length. One piece of cut sedge measured forty-five inches in 

 length; but it had been folded several times. Six adult-sized conies and 

 one juvenile were trapped at a hay pile near Vogelsang Lake, and it may 

 be that hay piles are community or at least family affairs. 



When not foraging and not occupied beneath the surface of the slide, 

 a cony sits in some partly protected place, often under or near a large 

 overhanging rock. The post usually selected is the crest of a backward- 

 slanting rock on a steep slope where the animal can enjoy a wide angle 

 of view below and yet be in position, when danger threatens, seemingly to 

 tumble back into the shelter of the slide. These perches, or observation 

 posts (pi. 386), are marked by accumulations of droppings, each one of 

 an oblately spherical shape like that of a rabbit but much smaller, and by 

 whitish stains due to the accumulation and action of the liquid excrement 

 on the granite. When perching the animal sits hunched up, usually with 

 its back higher than its head. It may maintain this position without any 

 change for several minutes at a time. When a cony "comes to attention" 

 on an observation post the head is often raised, the nose wiggled, and the 

 feet shuffled, all suggestive of mannerisms of a rabbit ; but the movements 

 of the head are much quicker. The hobbling gait reminds one somewhat 

 of the hopping of a brush-rabbit. The cony moves rapidly and with 

 apparent ease almost everywhere in a slide, even over very steep and 

 smooth rock surfaces. We have never seen one of these animals assume 

 the erect posture which is common to rabbits. 



The Yosemite Cony occupies the same rock-slide home with the Bushy- 

 tailed Wood Rat and the Sierra Marmot, but we have learned nothing 

 to indicate that these two large rodents molest it in any way. In the matter 

 of enemies, there are only three carnivorous animals which dwell in the 

 same situation and which we have reason to believe may prey upon the 

 cony. These are the Sierra Pine Marten and the Least and Mountain 

 weasels. At Vogelsang Lake, before sunrise of August 31, 1915, two conies 

 were heard 'bleating' vociferously and they were seen to run excitedly 

 here and there among the rocks. Investigation showed the cause of the 

 disturbance to be a Least Weasel. From the commotion which these 



