samples. Then to the Valle Encantado where we hiked in to the base of the rock spire that we assume to be the one called El Centinela. Looked for caves all around its base. Found one good one, but it was scoured and full of cow manure. No amber, no sheep manure. On the way in, however, we passed a couple of cipreses with branches barked in small patches, as described years ago at our camp on Estancia Alicura in the valley on the north side of the Rio Traful. Seemed fairly recent, and the bases of the trees were drowned in espina negra and other good cover, so Anita put 20 Shermans and 6 steel traps in and at the base of these trees. I climbed up to the other cave and saturated it and the bushes near the entrance with 20 Shermans and 7 steel traps. Three were at the base of the cipres-trunk ladder going up to the upper loft-cave. The cave is in coarse conglomerate rock, a tiny water seep from the wall at the back of the main cave. Domestic-variety honey bees were drinking from this seep. No sheep droppings. Vegetation at the mouth of the cave was: Berberis, bunchgrass, Senecio, a ground herb that I dont know, espina negra (Colletia), Baccharis, mountain neneo (small leaf), a small maiten tree right at the entrance, a dead and fallen cipres right at the entrance and a living cipres 30 yards away, clumps of the blue fragrant flower, calceolaria. No sheep droppings. Took a half hour to come down. Camped on the north side of the Rio Traful at the grove of pines. Michael Christie and friend Patricia found us as we were eating supper. Night mild. December 15- Michael heard Glaucidium owl during the night. Hiked up to the cave with Michael and Patricia. My traps held one big toad, Bufo spinulosa. Nothing even in good sets in thick brush at the mouth of the cave. Anita's traps also caught nothing. It took an hour to climb up to the cave. Michael's altimeter said 710m at the road and 960m at the cave. He says the river at Confluencia is 700m. Stopped at the Boliche at Nahuel Huapi for asado on the way home. Claudio and Juliana visited in the evening. Michael collected assorted bones in the upper loft of the cave: Assuming that they were completely disassociated, the count was 5 small tucos and 1 big tuco (distance across both lower incisors at the tip 6.2mm), 6 Phyllotis, 4 Chelemys, 11 Buneomys (2 have upper incisors with lateral grooves), 5 Auliscomys, 3 Reithrodon, 4 Chelemys. In with them in the film canister were droppings which might have been "loose" or might have broken off of pieces of amber that he collected: mm frequency 5 7 6 11 7 2 8 5