GEAY SQVIBEEL 199 



terminal tassel of needles was still adhering. Within this broom-like 

 envelope was a packed mass of softer material consisting of yellow pine 

 needles, shredded bark of incense cedar, and grass stems, all dried. Here 

 also were acorn hulls and shells of manzanita berries, suggesting that the 

 occupant had eaten food while in the nest. There were also a few pebbles 

 in this layer, but the reason for their presence was not evident. The inner- 

 most element, or nest proper, at the top of the structure, was of bark and 

 grasses, finely shredded and consequently of very soft texture. The main 

 bulk of the structure, below the nest cavity, was very damp, probably as 

 a result of rains a couple of weeks previously. The outside dimensions 

 of the whole structure were: average diameter 17i^ inches, height 11 

 inches. The soft-lined cavity at the top was about 6 inches across and 

 3 inches deep at the center. After being removed from the tree the whole 

 structure was found to weigh 10 pounds. There was no canopy or covering 

 to this particular nest, though as a rule outside nests are roofed over. 



Other nests of California Gray Squirrels were 'spotted,' by members 

 of our field party seeing the squirrels go to them. One outside nest, in 

 Yosemite Valley, was about 75 feet above the ground in a lodgepole pine. 

 At Smith Creek a nest was found in a black oak, in a cavity formed by 

 the rotting out of a large branch 35 feet above the ground. The soft nest 

 in which the young had been reared was 2 feet below the entrance hole. 

 In Yosemite Valley several squirrels were seen to disappear into cavities 

 high up in black oaks. On three occasions in early September, Gray 

 Squirrels were seen carrying to such nests loads of lining material. One 

 animal in particular, seen scampering along a road, had long wisps of 

 grass sticking out on both sides of its^mouth. The squirrel ran up a black 

 oak and disappeared with the material into a hole near the top of the 

 tree. Another, in Yosemite Valley on December 24, 1914, was carrying 

 in a great roll of needles of the yellow pine. 



The two principal items in the diet of the California Gray Squirrel are 

 the seeds of pines and the acorns of oaks. These, together, are available 

 over a long season ; and the squirrel tides over the balance of the year by 

 gathering and hiding away a surplus. 'Bracket fungi' growing on the 

 trunks of trees are eaten at times. There is a strong suspicion, supported 

 by much circumstantial evidence but by little direct observation, that Gray 

 Squirrels rob birds' nests in season. A change to a diet of fresh meat 

 may be sometimes welcome. 



The seeds of the yellow pine and sugar pine are eagerly sought by all 

 the Gray Squirrels living within the territory occupied by these trees. 

 In the foothill country the seeds of the digger pine are gathered. With 

 the advent of the first new seed-bearing cones in midsummer the squirrels 

 turn their attention to the pine trees and continue to use the cones until 

 the last of them are gone, in late winter. 



