July 31, 1922

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

Volume 1 July 31, 1922 Number 4 W. B. Lewis, Superintendent. Ansel F. Hall, Park Naturalist.

THE "WHITE SNOW PLANT"

From time to time rumors have come to the Yosemite Valley of a white Snow Plant growing within the Park borders. It was difficult to picture the blood red Snow Plant in a simple garb of white, consequently the "White Snow Plant" remained a mystery until our Monument Foreman brought from the Wawona grove of Big Trees a plant which answered very well the popular description. The specimen of the so-called "White Snow Plant" is now preserved and may be seen at the Museum. This short fleshy saprophyte belongs to the heath family and while it is not Sarcodes sanguinea, the true Snow Plant, it is a close relation. The peculiar arrangement of the red, thread-like stamens about the plump, rounded stigma give one the impression of a spider lurking in each individual blossom. The name of this plant is Pleuricospora fimbriolata.

WANTED: LIVE MICE AND GOPHERS

Recent accessions to the collection of live reptiles at the Yosemite Museum have brought the total number exhibited to more than a dozen species and almost two score individuals. Needless to say, such delectable dainties as live mice, rats, and gophers are voraciously greeted by the snakes. If you are clever enough to capture a small rodent bring it to the Museum; we have a snake to fit every one caught!

EXHIBIT OF PAPOOSE CARRIERS AT MUSEUM

A comparative exhibit of cradle baskets is attracting much attention at the Yosemite Museum. The papoose carriers are of all sizes and many of them are ornately decorated with buckskin and beads. One is unique in having spangles of Chinese coins and bear slugs. The tribes represented by the various carriers are the Miwok, Piute, Shoshone, Ute, and Yuma.

THE SKINK

A lizard with a red head, olive green smooth scaled body and bluish tail often attracts visitors. This lizard, restricted to the Yosemite region, is properly called the Skink. The Swift, or "fence lizard," and the Alligator Lizard are more abundant than the Skink. All lizards in California are harmless. In fact they are very useful insect destroyers.

TAME BEARS DELIGHT VISITORS

Visitors to the bear pits are nearly always rewarded at this time of year. Furthermore it is sometimes possible to see bears feeding in broad daylight. As a rule one must watch for bears by using a spotlight. A fine large Cinnamon Bear may often be seen feeding in the bear pits below Yosemite Lodge as early as 6 P.M. A medium sized bear at Glacier Point has become so tame that it will take candy from one's fingers.

SIERRA GROUSE

Early in the season we heard the distant booming of the Sierra Grouse which was heard along most of the trails which lead through the red fir forest. Then came the report of a nest discovered along the eleven mile trail to Glacier Point. The sitting bird allowed close approach. Now come reports of females with their broods of young. The Grouse, because of its large size, is one of the conspicuous birds of the Park. It is one of the few birds able to secure a food supply when snow covers the ground.

POST NESTING SEASON MIGRANTS APPEAR

Several species of birds which nest at lower elevations and some which are usually not above the rim of the valley have made their appearance. The Green-backed Goldfinch and the Western Gnatcatcher are now to be seen, having probably nested nearer down, and the Mountain Chickadee, the Red-breasted Nuthatch, Evening Grosbeak, and White-headed Woodpecker have come down from the highlands. Still other species which do not commonly nest in the valley may be expected.

HERMIT THRUSHES NEST IN CAMP CURRY TENTS

For several years past a pair of Hermit Thrushes have built their nest among the tents at Camp Curry. From one nest, discovered earlier in the season, the young left several weeks ago. This year a new nest was discovered which now contains [text unclear] young birds. A very tame pair and many have been enabled to become well acquainted with them. A fire salamander is heard many times from the inner trail near Happy Isles. Accompany the Nature Guides on a field trip and they will show you the nest and the birds.

THE HUMMINGBIRD

A nature photographer accompanied a hummingbird into the scarlet tube of a flower. [text unclear] The hummingbird buzzed about the very face of the observer and poised before the scarlet corolla, probed within by a young lady. [text unclear] This caused fright to the bird. With a few strokes it was away and hovered at a penstemon and as the watcher stood quite still the bird came near the flowers to have a look, gave the red head a glance and then desired to trace along the red in a lady's hand. Red flowers are especially attractive to hummingbirds.

THE SQUIRRELS AT GLACIER POINT

When eating one's lunch on the north side at Glacier Point three different kinds of squirrels may be seen feeding on lunch refuse — the common ground squirrel, the Golden-mantled ground squirrel, sometimes called "red-headed chipmunk," and the common chipmunk.

THE EVENING PRIMROSE

The beautiful Evening Primrose is now in bloom in Yosemite Valley. In the hour of sunset one may go into the meadow where the Evening Primrose grows and see it open its flowers. On the primrose plant are slender pointed buds. The four petals are closely held in place by four sepals. At a given moment all the covering petals loosen and part, then the flower greets one; there is another moment and the petals part still farther. The supporting sepals suddenly spring back, the petals move quickly, and behold the beautiful flower has fully spread.

All through the night these great yellow flowers attract the big moths. Before noon the next day the blossoms close, never to open again. The buds at the bottom of the stalk open first; night after night the flowers bloom up the stalk leaving a trail of seed pods behind them.

THE SPICE BUSH

The Spice Bush grows close to the Merced River between Yosemite Valley and El Portal. Its leaves are dark, and of excellent fragrance when crushed. From June to August it bears many small flowers. These flowers have numerous petals and are fashioned only by those who have numerous [text unclear] attracting the attention of visitors. It is related to the Carolina Allspice with smaller flowers and is of [text unclear] as the Carolina Allspice.

Digitized by Yosemite Online Library Dan Anderson