Pearson - 1994 15 Drove down to the bottom of the hill (towards Lago Meliquina) and skinned. Then drove toward San Martin de los Andes, past many pine plantations and past Lago Meliquina (nobody there). Found tuco diggings at the turnoff to Chapelco Ski Center, but none of them fresh. Turned up to Chapelco and asked if there were any tucos. A workman said no, you had to go down to San Martin. But we walked up on the ski slopes and found numerous fresh diggings. Got permission to put traps from the lady Administrator, who said that she sees evidence of them only in the snow in winter. So at 2 p.m. we set 13 steel traps, mostly on the ski runs. Tunnels are large and frequently deep. Even with fresh sign, we frequently could not find an open tunnel; they are packed with dirt down deep. Numerous burrows had swarms of tiny biting ants. Heard no tucos. A few hikers and bicyclers and workmen, but pretty much to ourselves. Sunny, warm. Ten traps were up on the ski slope, all within 150m of eachother. Another three traps were in a meadow with a soccer field, a quarter mile from the ski slope traps. Ran traps at 7-8 p.m. still sunlight, There were six tucos plus one trap buried by a tuco. Reset all these traps in the same places. Camped on the old road near the junction with the road to Villa Angostura. December 8- Night clear, not cold, dew. Picked up traps at 7 a.m., sunny. There were three more tucos, including one in the trap that had been buried. Total 9 tucos in 13 traps. All except one alive in the trap, caught by one foot or, two of them, by the tail. All were steel jump traps. None of the six traps that caught tucos yesterday caught tucos today. Nothing else in the traps either. The Administradora and her assistant had never seen a tuco before, but were famiilar with its tunnels in the snow. Skinned until 4 p.m., then drove down to San Martin de Los Andes and looked up Sr. Mario Gentili, a local entomologist and Director of the Instituto Patagonico de Ciencias Naturales, in his home. Tiny office stuffed with insect boxes, arrow heads, etc. He with ?Parkinson's? disease. He and his wife invited us to come back and trap at their cabin a few miles from San Martin; a