(From "Explorations and Field- Work of the 
Smithsonian Institution in 1936") 
COLLECTING BIRDS AND MAMMALS IN WEST 
VIRGINIA 
By WATSON M. PERRYGO 
Assistant Scientific Aid, Division of Mammals, U. S. National Museum 
As a considerable area in West Virginia was unrepresented in the 
National Museum's collection of birds and mammals, during the past 
season, Carleton Lingebach and I were assigned the task of collecting 
specimens in that region. We left on April 16, 1936, for White 
Sulphur Springs, accompanied by Dr. Remington Kellogg. During 
the 2 days spent there, we set traps for a subspecies of flying squirrel, 
but were unsuccessful in our efforts. However, we did get some mice 
and birds. From there we continued to Huntington, in the southwest- 
ern corner of the State. We stayed there about 2 weeks, working up 
the Guyandot Valley to Logan, where, among other things, we got a 
Swainson's warbler, this constituting the second record from West 
Virginia. We also worked up the Twelve Pole Creek to Dunlow. 
Dr. Kellogg returned to Washington, and we continued on to Sum- 
mersville, where the altitude reaches 1,750 feet. This section, about 
the middle of the State, is heavily wooded country, and rhododendron 
grows abundantly. Dr. Alexander Wetmore joined us here on May 8. 
In Richwood we obtained permission from the forest ranger to visit 
Cranberry Glades, which is part of the Monongahela National Forest. 
We followed the Cranberry River, starting at an altitude of 2,200 feet, 
and went up to about 3,300 feet to the glades. This beautiful river 
is one of the finest trout streams in the State. The glades lie between 
Black Mountain and the Kennison Mountains and are grown with 
spruce forest beginning at about 3,000 feet. Birds are very numerous, 
especially the grouse, which we could hear drumming daily through 
the mountains. We saw several signs of bear, this section being ap- 
parently one of their main strongholds in the State. We saw here 
flat, moss-covered areas which seem to have been lake bottoms at one 
time. The scenery has a northern aspect recalling parts of Canada. 
After Dr. Wetmore's return to Washington, we went to Grantsville, 
where we spent a profitable week, obtaining a variety of birds. 
In the northeastern part of the State we camped in an oak grove 
near Philippi. The hills here were more rolling and less steep than 
where we had been previously, the altitude being around 1,900 or 
2,000 feet. Many kinds of birds and mammals were abundant here ; 
we got a good collection of flying squirrels, as well as two Bewick's 
31 
