he lower border of the pinon belt and adjacent
grassy plains. Both species of bears occur throughout the pine forests
in summer, often following sheep herds. As winter approaches and the
sheep are moved out of the higher ranges, many of the bears go over "The
Rim" to the slopes of Tonto Basin, where they find acorns, juniper
berries and other food, until cold weather causes them to hibernate.
The mountain lions are always most numerous on the rugged slopes of
Tonto Basin, especially during winter, when sheep and game have left the
elevated forest.

From the foregoing notes it is apparent that the northwestern and middle
portions of the Black Mesa Reserve are without proper winter range for
game within its limits, and that the conditions are otherwise
unfavorable for their use as game preserves.

THE SOUTHEASTERN SECTION OF THE BLACK MESA RESERVE.

The southeastern portion of the reserve remains to be considered. The
map shows this to be a rectangular area, about thirty by fifty miles in
extent, lying between the White Mountain Indian Reservation and the
western border of New Mexico, and covering the adjacent parts of Apache
and Graham counties. It includes the eastern part of the White
Mountains, which culminate in Ord and Thomas peaks, rising respectively
to 10,266 feet and to 11,496 feet, on the White Mountain Indian
Reservation, just off the western border of the Forest Reserve. This
section of the reserve is strikingly more varied in physical conditions
than the northern portion, as will be shown by the following
description:

The northwestern part of this section, next to the peaks just mentioned,
is an elevated mountainous plateau country forming the watershed between
the extreme headwaters of the Little Colorado on the north and the Black
and San Francisco rivers, tributaries of the Gila, on the south. The
divide between the heads of these streams is so low that in the midst of
the undulating country, where they rise, it is often difficult to
determine at first sight to which drainage some of the small tributaries
belong. This district is largely of volcanic formation, and beds of lava
cover large tracts, usually overlaid with soil, on which the forest
flourishes.

The entire northern side of this section is bordered by the sloping
grassy plains of the Little Colorado, which at their upper border have
an elevation of 6,500 to 7,500 feet, and are covered here and there with
pinons, cedars and junipers,