WILD LIFE IN CALIFORNIA 



55 



gravel bar about 60 feet away. As long as I 

 remained motionless they gave no attention 

 to my presence. But evidently they "sniffed 

 danger," for they held their heads high, nerv- 

 ously flipping their big ears and looking first 

 one way, then another. However, when I 

 made the first step they were off like a flash, 

 the little one quickly passing the mother, into 

 the brush that hid them from further view. 



Another time while fishing on this same ' 

 stream in a large pool made dark by over- 

 hanging treetops I saw a mink come down the 

 bank on the opposite side. At the edge of the 

 water it stopped long enough to look around, 

 and then to my great astonishment took to 

 the water and swam directly towards me. As 

 I stood in the margin of the pool when the 

 mink landed on my side it was on top of my 

 right foot which was in position for a strong 

 kick, which was made with enough force to 

 land the animal half-way across the pool, into 

 which it fell with a splash. In all probability 

 the spell of astonishment was transferred 

 from man to animal by the act. At any rate 

 it was so thoroughly convinced that it had 

 come into sudden contact with a superior force 

 that it did not come to the surface of the 

 water again but swam like a fish to a retreat 

 on the other side. 



The handsome, big, bushy-tailed gray 

 squirrel must, like so many other forms of 

 life, finds this place well adapted to its needs 

 and comforts for the species is well repre- 

 sented. On warm bright days it was no trouble 

 to see one. In fact it was not uncommon to 

 see them running along the top of the fence 

 about our dwelling. Their friendly visits ex- 

 tended even to the roof of the building. One 

 afternoon while sitting on the porch I heard 

 a squirrel on the roof overhead. I whistled 

 softly and it soon peered down at me over 

 the edge of the roof. Apparently not satisfied 

 in its curiosity, it came down to a board 

 fastened to the porch posts about six feet 

 above my head and after full inspection of me 

 it leisurely hopped along the entire length of 

 the board, then returned to the roof. I think 

 it would be no trouble to make them so tame 

 they would come for food and be pets about 

 the place. 



As might be imagined from the description 

 of the country, formerly coons, skunks and 

 other objectionable animals were also very 

 numerous hereabouts, but the very high price 

 at which their pelts sold during the last year 

 or so incited every man and boy in the 

 country to trapping, and as a result very few 

 of these animals remain to represent species 

 once so common. The destruction of these 

 animals, especially the skunks, will in all 

 probability be of advantage to brooding quail, 

 as there are so few left to destroy the eggs 

 or the young birds after hatching. Therefore 

 there should be a corresponding improvement 

 in the numbers of these handsome game birds. 

 An event quail hunters will hail with delight. 



In the matter of wild flowers I know of 

 several districts of the coast section of the 

 State where a greater variety prevail, but I 

 know of no place where native flowers that 

 find representation grow to greater perfec- 



tion and beauty. This is particularly true of 

 the iris, which is to be seen almost every- 

 where. The creamy white species Douglasiana. 

 are extra large. I found some specimens 

 that measured nearly five inches across; 

 four and a quarter inches were very common. 

 Great clumps of varied shades of the 

 Macrosiphon were not uncommon. Beds of 

 baby-blue-eyes, and delicate tinted violets 

 were common enough to satisfy the most sen- 

 timental lover of flowers. 



The grass covered slope ■ of a half acre or 

 more in front of our house presented a beau- 

 tiful sight for nearly a fortnight. It was 

 mantled by a mass of bright yellow poppies, 

 blue-eyed-grass, brodiaeas and other flowers of 

 lesser prominence. The effect of the colors 

 of these blossoms was suggestive of the Blue 

 and Gold of our university. I will not dwell 

 longer on the subject of flowers other than 

 to say the profusion of blossoms had at- 

 tractions for some of the lower orders of life 

 as well as for the highest. The flowers to- 

 gether with the warm and pleasant weather 

 brought numbers of various kind of insects 

 and it is of the doings and habits of some 

 of these neighbors I propose to give a few 

 interesting details. 



Let us begin with the bees, for their life 

 history, generally speaking, is inseparable 

 from flowers, and they were present in greater 

 numbers than any other single insect family. 

 Nearly every genus of the Bee family was 

 represented in our amphitheater from the 

 big, burly bumble bee to the most diminutive 

 form of Halicitidae, not more than a quarter 

 of an inch in length. Of course the bees I 

 am writing about are wild bees. I never 

 have seen a beehive in this section of country, 

 but hive bees that have gone wild are quite 

 numerous. Though, as I have said, that bees 

 of nearly all kinds that are common to this 

 section are in evidence and seemingly very 

 busy in their employments, very few of their 

 nearest relatives, the wasps, are around yet 

 The time I am writing about is the last of 

 April; in another month, however, the wasp 

 family will outnumber the bees. 



The first bees to attract my attention on 

 this trip were the big, Carpenter bees, 

 Xylooopa. In the United States there are 

 several species which vary in size, but so far 

 as I can learn the habits of all are much 

 the same. The females of the two large 

 species thaj; I have seen on the Coast are en- 

 tirely black, while the males of one species 

 are all yellow, and in the other the 

 males have only a yellowish thorax with 

 black abdomen. The former of these are 

 the largest, or the giants, of the bee family. 

 These I saw on the Colorado desert. It was 

 members of the other species I found so 

 numerous here. 



In tearing down a small structure we 

 found a 3x3 split redwood post, the upper 

 end of which* for a distance of twelve inches 

 contained several holes made by the Carpen- 

 ter bees. I cut off the perforated part and 

 split it open, revealing the tunnels, shafts 

 and raises, connected with the entrances 

 bored into the sides of the post. Prom the 



