Pearson-1988 April 17- Bariloche. Arrived yesterday afternoon. Steppe dry and looks winter from the air; rosa mosqueta leaves not yellow yet, poplars not completely yellow. Was met at Ezeiza by two students from La Plata and handed over to them the Aconaemys loaned to Josep Alcover. They are having floods in the pampa, and from the air one sees millions of small ponds but not great sheets of water. Met at Bariloche by Adrian Monjeau. University and schools on strike. Clear, cool, windy. Michael Christie came this afternoon. He had been collecting near Copahue in Neuquen up to 2100 m elevation and brought in two huge Buneomys and one much smaller one that was nonetheless pregnant. See species account. Also Ako longi and Ctenomys probably maulinus. Also a juv. Chelemys with yellow incisors. Christie says that it has been a dry summer, but not extreme. The lake at Perito Moreno dried up completely. There was not much of a snowpack. Cold drizzle in the afternoon. April 18- Bariloche. Morning drizzly windy, even a little snow mixed in. Got the car started, barely. Christie came with references about Buneomys. Looks like there may be two species, a big one and a small one, but the literature is chaotic. Left at 3 pm for Limay. The lombardy poplars are spotty: some almost gone, some not yet yellow. Stopped at the sociabilis tuco place, which is 9.6 km N of the turnoff to Villa Angostura. Considerable sign of digging although not many fresh (but rain may have aged them). Also stopped at 22.0km N across the road and a a few hundred m north of the new trout farm; looked like tuco diggings but none fresh. Then stopped at Arroyo Carbon, which is 30.3 km N of the Angostura turn-off. There is now a big gravel operation at the Arroyo with dozens of trucks etc. I looked for tuco sign along the road where we had seen it before; a few rather old burrows, but not enough to encourage trapping. Weather sunny. Drove a couple of hundred m north of the arroyo and pulled up an old road that goes past some poplar trees. Then put out two trap lines of Shermans baited with rolled oats. 32 traps running through a somewhat marshy area with lots of pampas glass and scattered bushes (Berberis, Colletia, Mutisia, chacay; 15 traps nearer the car mostly near bushes (mostly Berberis). Lots of Acaena, scattered bunchgrass, neneo, Senecio. Wind died at dusk, sky clear. April 19-Two gauchos came riding down the trail and through the secured gate in pitch dark, no moon, about 9 pm. Mostly clear early night, then clouded over; no frost. The older gaucho came back through in the morning- precious grizzled, poncho et4 al-but eyeglasses. He is the puestero on this ranch, La Lipela, and his house is at the alamos along the road south of Arroyo Carbon. The Estancia is owned by a man in Bariloche. See species account (Ctenomys sociabilisfor his comments on the local tucos. Ran traps at 7am: 19 Oryzomys and 10 Akodon longipilis all more or less