ANIMAL LTFE VEGETATION. 23 
another and unwatered stretches of more than 40 miles are uncom- 
mon. The Indians, except when gathering pirion nuts, camp ; 
water, and old Indian camping grounds, numerous fragments of 
stone implements, smoke-stained rocks, and carvings on rock may be 
valuable water indicators. Perhaps the best water signs are si one 
monuments built by the Indians and early white explorers either on 
high points on each side of the trail at water or close together on a 
commanding point above the water. These monuments are from •_ 
to 8 feet in height and resemble mineral monuments, except that the} 
bear no location notices. From some of them flat stones set on edge 
point toward the water; at others a sharpened stick lying in a forked 
one is the indicator. 
ANIMAL LIFE. 
Animals are nowhere abundant in the area under consideration, 
and Death Valley appears to be without resident animals, with the 
exception of a few coyotes. The lack of food and the scarcity of 
water render the area as a whole unfit for large animals. Bands of 
wild horses roam the lowlands around the Cactus and Kawich 
ranges, however, and a few antelope feed in the valleys on either 
side of the Kawich Range and on Pahute Mesa. Mountain sheep 
are reported from the Lone Mountain country and old trails were 
noted on the higher peaks of the Stonewall Mountains. A few 
mountain sheep still live in the Panamint Range and in the south 
end of the Amargosa Mountains. Coyotes and rabbits are often 
seen, particularly in the vicinity of springs. Animals allied to 
gophers seem less dependent on known water holes.. 
Hawks, ravens, magpies, sparrows, and owls fly long distances 
from water. Mourning doves, on the other hand, flock around the 
springs and a few coveys of California quail live in the better 
watered portions of the Panamint and Amargosa ranges. Ducks 
in their annual migrations stop to rest and feed at the springs in the 
Oasis Valley and at Ash Meadows and the Furnace Creek ranch. 
Various species of lizards, including the horned toad, are common 
In the valleys. Rattlesnakes, both the ordinary variety and the 
peculiar sidewinder, are sometimes seen, but are by no means as 
common as report would lead one to believe. The same is true of 
the scorpion and tarantula. Ants are common, and brilliantly col- 
ored butterflies are unexpectedly numerous. Mosquitoes and similar 
pests occur only near a few of the larger water holes. 
VEGETATION. 
Open forests of pinon {Piniis m.onophylla) and juniper (Juniper 
utahensis) occur above the dry timber line, a which approximates an 
elevation of 6,500 feet. The wood of both trees, particularly the 
a Russell, I. C, Bull. Geol. Soc. America, vol. 14, 1904, pp. 556-557. 
