17. White-Headed Woodpecker - Dendrocopos albolarvatus. About 9" long. Has about 6 young in a brood. Eats ants and grubs from dead trees. Habitat is wooded areas both open and dense. Nests in a hollow in a dead tree. Forestry Story - Pine trees are damaged by insects, too. Woodpeckers help stop damage by eating insects and larvae. Tree farmers spray such areas from airplanes and also harvest bad trees to remove insect-breeding areas and save wood.
5. Western Chipmunk - Eutamias quadrivittatus. About 9" long. Has 4 to 6 young per litter. Eats seeds, nuts, buds, fruit, insects. Habitat is all forested areas from sea coast to mountain slopes. Home is a burrow in the earth or between rocks. Forestry Story - Seeds from mature cones are scattered by wind over nearby harvested lands to start new crops of Douglas fir for the future. Tree farmers prepare for this natural reseeding by leaving seed trees near cutover areas.
2. Valley Quail - Lophortyx californica. About 10" long. Has 9-15 chicks. Eats weed seeds, grain and insects. Fine game bird. Habitat is agricultural and semi-agricultural regions. Nests on the ground. Forestry Story - Tree farmers grow timber as a crop, just like oats or corn. Most tree farm lands are too hilly or remote for any other use. Any parts found suitable for ordinary farming are usually released for general agriculture.
6. Ruffed Grouse - Bonasa umbellus. About 16" long. Has 6-10 chicks. Eats buds, berries, insects and seeds. Noted game bird. Habitat is brush patches and hardwood areas along creeks and river bottoms. Nests on the ground under a bush or tree. Forestry Story - Tiny Douglas fir seedling are protected from the weather by large ferns and other ground growth. Such cover keeps the soil moist and helps the new trees grow sturdy and strong enough to withstand the elements.
12. Red-Breasted Nuthatch - Sitta canadensis. About 5" long. Has 4-8 young in a brood. Eats insects, nuts and hard seeds. Wedges them in a branch cleft and breaks the shell with its chisel-like bill. Habitat is forest and thicket, usually near civilization. Nests in hollow trees. Forestry Story - The damp, long winters and mild summers coupled with good forest soil produces long-fibered wood of unusual strength in Douglas fir regions of Washington and Oregon. Douglas fir is native to this area.
19. Red Fox - Vulpes fulva. About 41" long. Has 4-9 kits in a litter. Eats birds, small animals, fruit and berries. Habitat is prairies and forested sections. Digs its burrow in a bank of earth, or under a stump or in a hollow log. Forestry Story - Trained foresters select each pine tree to be harvested by marking it with a painted "C" which means "cut". Loggers take only the marked trees, leaving the others to grow more and to drop seeds for the future tree crop.
7. Raccoon - Procyon lotor. About 30" long. Weighs about 15 pounds. Has usually about four young in a litter. Is practically omniverous. Washes its food before eating. Habitat is streams, lakes and marshes. Home is in hollow trees, hollow logs or burrows. Forestry Story - Many new trees grow where one grew before on a tree farm. About 3 to 5 years old, these even-aged trees will mature many years from now. They will then be harvested to supply wood products for a future generation.
14. Otter - Lutra canadensis. About 45" long. Weighs 18-25 pounds. Has 1-3 young in a litter. Eats fish, crayfish and at times birds and small mammals. Habitat is the vicinity of lakes and water courses. Den is in a bank with entrance under water, or sometimes in a hollow log. Forestry Story - Natural forest enemies destroy timber every year than is harvested for American's daily needs. Such enemies include fire, wind, insects and disease. Tree farmers spend vast sums to suppress damage from these sources.
3. Mountain Goat - Oreamnos americanus. About 41" tall. Has 1 or 2 kids at once. Eats mountain plants - moss, grass, lichens, twigs and brush. Habitat is the highest and roughest mountains. Rocky ridges and walls. Seldom seen below timber line. Forestry Story - Douglas fir seedlings grow best on open, sunlit ground. That is why Douglas fir forests are harvested by clear-cutting staggered patches on tree farms. New tree crops for the future grow rapidly on the clean, cutover areas.
18. Great Horned Owl - Bubo virginianus. About 24" long. Has 2-4 young in a brood. Eats birds and animals, especially mice. Habitat is woodland and adjacent areas. Forestry Story - Tree farmers harvest pine by individual tree selection. Since pine grows in open stands, new trees thrive right among older trees, left as a seed source. Douglas fir, however, must be clear-cut or new trees won't grow well.