234 East and West 
Cafion blooms the pretty Western wallflower 
and a dwarf larkspur, while below the rim in 
the talus of the limestone under the Douglas 
spruce, the yellow dicentra is in blossom. As 
one descends, the alpine phlox continues for 
some distance but is noticeably larger than on 
the plateau. Flea-banes, larkspurs, and two 
species of red pentstemons appear as the trail 
drops into the red sandstone, and on the 
plateau below is the mariposa. Continuing 
to the river the trail takes one to the Lower 
Sonoran Zone in a descent of five thousand 
feet. It is northern and southern Arizona 
compassed in a few miles. 
While free agents compared with plants, 
birds correspond to their environment very 
closely, and a glance at the common birds 
on the Coconino plateau would give some 
idea of the elevation had one no aneroid in 
his pocket. Red-backed juncos, mountain 
chickadees, and slender-billed nuthatches are 
soon discovered and these three in themselves 
are a key to the position. Then there are 
the long-crested and pifion jays, Western 
evening grosbeaks and cabanis woodpeckers, 
while violet-green swallows and white-throated 
swifts skim over the rim of the Cafion. For 
some reason these birds do not remain in the 
