This species was on the Pacific face of the Mountains from 1600 feet
elevation in the coastal sage belt, to 4800 feet elevation in open
groves of big cone-spruce and scrub oak of the chaparral association.
The local distribution of this woodrat is determined by suitable nesting
sites. Although taken in different types of vegetation, _lepida_,
without exception, was associated with rocky areas or areas supporting
patches of prickly-pear cactus. In the channels of San Antonio Wash,
_lepida_ was commonly associated with jumbles of boulders and
boulder-dotted cut banks. There the vegetation is sparse, and the rats
dwell among the rocks; only their droppings and faint trails indicate
their presence. Among boulders _lepida_ builds only small houses of
sticks and debris, and even these only occasionally. The effect of the
prickly-pear cactus on the distribution of _lepida_ in the sageland is
striking; trap lines there yielded no woodrats where extensive rock
piles and patches of prickly-pear were absent, but many rats were taken
where patches of prickly-pear are plentiful. On an acre supporting
coastal sagebrush at the mouth of San Antonio Canyon, at 1800 feet
elevation, there were fourteen patches of prickly-pear, each covering at
least thirty square feet. In these patches there were thirteen occupied
woodrat nests. Only one patch lacked an occupied nest, and this one
contained the remains of an old nest. On this acre there were at least
thirteen individuals. In the sagebrush belt only an occasional large
patch of cactus lacks a woodrat house occupied by _lepida_. Seemingly
_Neotoma fuscipes_ does not build houses in patches of prickly-pear.
Most of the houses built by _Neotoma lepida_ are small and simple as
compared to those of _Neotoma fuscipes_, and often in rocky areas no
nests are in evidence. The most elaborate nests are built among the pads
and spines of the prickly-pear and under laurel sumac or other large
shrubs growing near washes. One of three houses examined at the mouth of
San Antonio Canyon was on sandy ground in a patch of _Opuntia_ measuring
approximately 11 x 14 feet. The house was 14 inches high and 41 x 37
inches at the base. It was built around the main stem of the
prickly-pear and a rock about 10 inches in diameter. The house was
constructed of sticks of coastal sagebrush and buckwheat, and was dotted
with dissected fruits and flowers of the prickly-pear. The main chamber
was arched over by the main stem of the prickly-pear and was roughly 12
x 19 inches, inside dimensions, being reached through two three-inch
openings, one on the east side of the chamber and one on the north side
of the chamber. Two cup-shaped nests were inside the chamber, these
being constructed mostly of grasses, and each resembling a well
constructed bird nest 4 inches in diameter. The grass nests were free of
feces, but feces were piled up against the west side of the chamber with
many snail shells and dissected fruits and flowers of prickly-pear.
Thirty-five inches from the main chamber was a third grass nest on the
ground beneath a cluster of cactus pads. Next to this there was a blind
burrow about eight inches long, and one and three-quarters inches in
diameter. No burrow led to the main chamber, in this or in either of the
other houses, but all had at least one short blind burrow beneath the
house.
At many houses there were one to three grass nests outside the house on
the ground, within four feet of the house. From each nest a well worn
path lead to the house. Traps set in these nests invariably caught
woodrats.
The many prickly-pear fruits and snail shells in and around the houses
of _lepida_ probably were remnants of food. So many of the rodents
caught in traps near woodrat nests were partly eaten--usually the brains
were taken--that I suspect the woodrats of eating their relatives. The
heads of many composite annuals were piled near woodrat nests.
Immature individuals were taken in September, October, and early
November, and on September 26, 1951, a lactating female was trapped near
Palmer Canyon.
An old female bobcat trapped in Thompson Canyon had masses of cactus
thorns beneath her skin, especially about the forelegs. These thorns
were probably received while she was foraging in growths of prickly-pear
for woodrats. The other bobcats from San Antonio Wash also had
accumulations of thorns under the skin of the forelegs. Fragments of the
skulls of _Neotoma lepida_ were recovered from horned owl pellets and
coyote feces.
_Specimens examined._--Total, 7, distributed as follows: Los
Angeles County: San Antonio Canyon, 4500 ft., 2; San Antonio
Wash, 1800 ft., 5 (2 PC).
=Neotoma lepida lepida= Thomas