CALIFORNIA FISU AND GAME 53 



true in summer, when the black-tailed deer that generally winter to the 

 westward invade the eastern parts of Siskiyou, Shasta, Plumas, Sierra, 

 Nevada and Placer counties and western Lassen County. Some black- 

 tailed deer probably winter with the mule deer east of the boundary 

 line, as in eastern Siskiyou County (Red Rock Valley) and in eastern 

 Plumas County (east of Quincy between Keddie and Beckwith peaks, 

 fide L. B. Mercer), however the great majority of black-tails winter to 

 the westward. In preparing this map, no attempt has been made to 

 show the eastern range limit of black-tailed deer or the winter range of 

 mule deer. 



Mule deer winter at many points throughout the area that they 

 occupy in summer. In fact they winter almost wherever snow depths 

 will permit them to do so throughout their summer range. When they 

 migrate, they generally, but by no means always, do so to the eastward 

 in fall, but at a considerably later date than do the black-tails move 

 westward. There is never a winter mule deer migration west of the 

 summer line shown on the map and it is of the greatest rarity that an 

 individual of this species is said to accompany the black-tails to the 

 westward, however, there are one or two purported records of this 

 having happened in Tehama County. Mule deer winter west to Red 

 Rock Valley, Siskiyou County, in the vicinity of Game Refuge 1-B and 

 in the rough lavas south of it. In heavy winters, when deep snows 

 invade the 1-B country, these deer are said to work westward into 

 Red Rock Valley which is an area of less snowfall (F. B. Starr). They 

 also winter in the Crowder Flat country, along both slopes of the 

 Warner Mountains, and on Big Mountain, near Adin, Modoc County 

 (^4. A. Jordan). A considerable number winter on Bieber Mountain 

 in northwestern Lassen County and in extreme southwestern Modoc 

 County {Paid Kehrer). The country between Pittville and Westwood 

 has too much snowfall to i)ermit deer to winter there and the mule 

 deer of this area work eastward in late fall to winter east of the 

 Madeline Plains and in Game Refuge 1-Q, to or across the Nevada 

 line. The animals that summer in eastern Plumas County southwest 

 of Honey Lake along the main divide of the Sierra Nevada Mountains 

 winter on the east slopes of Long Valley and east into western Nevada, 

 south of this point all Rocky Mountain mule deer summering in Cali- 

 fornia apparently winter in Nevada. It should also be mentioned that 

 many, if not most of the mule deer summering in that section of extreme 

 soutii central Oregon, bounded by the towns of Malin, Bly and Lake- 

 view, apparently migrate southwesterly in fall to winter in the vicinity 

 of Game Refuge 1-B in Modoc County. 



According to the reports of some early residents of the Modoc 

 region (L. N. Lorenzen, Mt. Shasta, Thomas Ivory, Canby, and others) 

 in the early days, fifty years or so ago, mule deer were not at all 

 ])lentiful in the area. Lorenzen recently told tlie writer that old time 

 cattle riders have informed him that one could ride for a day without 

 seeing a deer in regions where similar excursions today would reveal 

 many of these animals. Deer seem to have increased steadily in the 

 Modoc region from early times until about 1928 when most local 

 inhabitants agree that the peak population for modern times was 

 attained. The following year, and 1930, was apparently the time 

 that the present depletion commenced. The winter of 1932-1933 may, 



