Pinon Jays West of the Sierra Nevadan Divide in California
Piiion Jays West of the Sierra Nevadan Divide in California.-In the late summer and fall of 1955, several observations of Pifion Jays (Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus) were made on the west slope of the central Sierra Nevada, California, an area seldom visited by the species. All were at or near Kinsman Flat, a broad, flat area situated directly above and on the west side of the San Joaquin River in Madera County at 3700 feet elevation. The nearest landmarks shown on the geological survey map (Kaiser Quadrangle) are Hooker’s Cove and Power House No. 8. The vegetation there consists primarily of heavy stands of chaparral 10 to 20 feet high, in which manzanita, ceanothus, mountain mahogany, interior live oak and flannel bush are predominant, and interspersed woodland consisting of Digger pines, black oaks and blue oaks.
On August 24, a flock of approximately 25 Pirion Jays was first heard.and then seen. The birds remained well above the ground, stopping only in the tops of taller Digger pines. Although the flock was moving as a unit, individuals within it flew and landed independently; consequently they were more or less scattered. They flew several hundred feet between stops, frequently uttering their loud, single-note call in flight. While resting, they remained silent.
On September 12, two Pifion Jays were seen and heard flying overhead about one-half mile north of the first observation site. The latest observation was made on the east slope of Lion Point, 1% miles to the southwest of Kinsman Flat, at an elevation of 4000 feet on October 12, when a flock of exactly 26 Piiion Jays was Counted.-PETER A. JORDAN, North Fork, California, November 3, 1955,
