The life of Ernest Sheldon Booth began as a baby and young child of Sheldon Booth and Mary Booth in Wilkesbury, Pennsylania. After approximately one year, the family immigrated to Saskatchewan, Canada, where his younger brother, Elwood, was born. A few years later, the family migrated back into the United States to Walla Walla in eastern Washington. After high school, Ernest Sheldon Booth moved to California for 4 years until his graduation from Pacific Union College in Napa County, of the northern San Francisco Bay region. After graduation, Ernest Booth moved back to eastern Washington to become a new professor and chairman of the Biology Department at Walla Walla College. At Walla Walla College, Ernest Booth began his mammalogy research, investigating, and writing articles and books on mammals, as well as birds and plants. In 1958, Ernest Booth moved to Southern California to Escondido in San Diego County. And soon he began a professorship at Loma Linda University and later La Sierra University. He brought students to field camps in the San Bernardino Mountains and the San Jacinto Mountains, where he kept his interest in mammals and birds, including the Flying Squirrel and many other mammals too. Finally, Ernest Booth retired and he moved back to Washington near the coast at Skagit.
Not too long after Ernest Booth completed his 1947 dissertation and Ph.D. he was offered the opportunity to write a book on all the mammals of North America for William C. Brown Company. He completed the 204 page book project in 1949 for publication in 1950. This book was revised in 1961 as a second edition, and again in 1971 and 1981 for a third and fourth edition. One can see that the 1968 book, MAMMALS OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA was written between the time period of the second and third edition of HOW TO KNOW THE MAMMAlS.
Aside from these three publications, Ernest Booth worked with graduate students at Walla Walla University for their Master theses, on specific mammals, such as the published 1963 ecology report on the Sagebrush Vole, which Ernest S. Booth coauthored with William B. James.
On the topic of deer in southern California, I wish that Ernest Booth would have said more specific ecological, natural history information of the historical ecology of deer, but considering that his book, MAMMALS OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA was written in the mid-1960s, then published in 1968, his natural history note on the Mule Deer is from 50 years ago, so his narrative is historical ecology in that regard and is reprinted as an excerpt here for consideration as solid natural history and life history observation:
"The Mule Deer is the most characteristic deer in the West, although the White-tailed Deer also occurs over most of the West, but not in Southern California.
Mule Deer live in almost all timbered areas of the West, and in Southern California they occur in mountain forests, especially where timber is not very dense. They prefer meadows surrounded by forests, and open grassy areas surrounded by scattered shrubs. Deer occur in the extensive chaparral-covered slopes throughout Southern California, too, and are even more abundant in rocky canyons which are well-forested with oaks, sycamores and chaparral. In all these areas the deer find food in the form of leafy shrubs, yet they have adequate cover in the form of trees and dense brush. Mule Deer inhabit all the mountains of Southern California.
Mule Deer change color twice a year, from tan in summer, to dark brown or gray in winter.
Deer are most common in parks where they are protected from hunters. The practice of feeding them by hand should be discouraged, for they soon are spoiled by such handouts, and people may be seriously injured by the sharp hooves of the deer, when the food runs out, or is not coming fast enough to satisfy the deer.
Identification: Color in summer reddish or yellowish-tan; in winter dark brown to dark gray; tail black on upper side. Size about 3 feet tall; length about 5 feet.
Habitat: Chaparral, forests, and woodland.
Range: Throughout Southern California in suitable habitats.
Young: One or two born in May or June.
Food: Leaves, twigs, grass, small green plants, fruit."
Unfortunately, Ernest Sheldon Booth did not tell us that they were introduced to Catalina Island in the 1930s by the Wrigley family. And when I worked on Catalina from 1996-1998, I observed Mule Deer on the seashore on cobble beaches just a few feet from the waves and surf, licking the rocks and algae, presumably for salt and minerals to supplement their diet.
Ernest Booth also did not cite the article by Chester Collins, so that the naturalist readers of his book would know that Mule Deer occurred near sea level and the seashore in the Baldwin Hills above Culver City and Inglewood, and at Hollywood. And I have observed Mule Deer travel down Malibu Creek under the Pacific Coast Highway #1 bridge, to feed on salt marsh vegetation at Malibu Lagoon, as well as to visit the rose bushes at the Adamson House above Malibu lagoon.
Much earlier than his writing on the Mule Deer of Southern California, by about 20 years, Ernest Sheldon Booth in 1949-1950 wrote about the ecology of this deer in the western United States (Booth, 1950, 1961, 1971, 1982). Comparison of these two statement by Ernest Booth about 20 years apart in time is worthy of consideration so I excerpt the passage on the Mule Deer that he wrote in 1950 as follows:
"Mule Deer are abundant on the ranges of the eastern parts of the Pacific coast states, in the Great Basin region, and in the Rocky Mountain states. They may be found in every forest where they are allowed to live, occurring in such large numbers in some regions that hunting must be opened for does as well as bucks."
A careful reading of his narrative shows interesting conservation ideas that are different due to politics of society from 1950 to 2016, a period of well over 50 years apart. For example, note the words that he used such as "must" and the phrase "... allowed to live" suggesting a bias of practicability of the era that hunters were still influential in guiding conservation which is not the case today. In later addition of this book, How To Know The Mammals, Ernest Booth never changed the narrative passage excerpted above, but not because his philosophy did not change, but rather I surmise due to the work that would be necessary to revise all the mammal narratives in his book of approximately 200 pages. So we are left to wonder if the philosophy of Ernest Booth changed with regard to hunting and conservation from 1950 to 1980?
Noted mammalogist colleague of Ernest Booth, E. Raymond Hall (1982:601) acknowledged Dr. Booth, when he cited Booth (1968:46) regarding the Beaver in the San Bernardino Mountains. There are four additional places in the 2-volume book that Hall (1982) cites Ernest Booth, particularly related to a subspecies "boothi" for a mammal carnivore from Mexico known as the Kinkajou.
Noted mammalogists, B. J. Verts and Leslie Callaway (1998), only 18 years ago, acknowledged Ernest Booth by citing four of his peer-reviewed articles (Booth, 1942, 1943, 1946, 1947), on rodents (squirrels and mice). The mammalogists cited the research of Ernest Booth related to behavior, natal development, ecology, and taxonomy by Ernest Booth on at least a dozen pages for at least 23 points of information to support their own findings on rodents.
1941. Field Key to the Mammals of Washington. Walla Walla College Library. 72 pages.
[Unpublished Field Key by Ernest Booth antedates Ph.D dissertation by several years.]
1942. Observations on the Young of Eutamias. The Murrelet 23:84.
[First peer-reviewed mammal article.]
1943. Observations on the Kangaroo Rat in Captivity. The Murrelet 24(1): 10-11.
[Second peer-reviewed mammal article. Article discusses live capture
in February 1941 on east bank of Columbia River, south of mouth of Snake River,
near Wallula, Washington. Two individuals kept alive until January 1942,
when both died at breeding time.]
1944. Temporary Preservation of Small Mammals. Journal of Mammalogy 25(4):354-358.
[Third peer-reviewed mammal article: November 1944.]
1945. Corynorhinus in Northeastern Oregon. The Murrelet 26(1):26.
[Fourth peer-reviewed mammal aticle: February 1945.]
1945. A New Red-backed Mouse from Washington. The Murrelet 26(2):27-28.
[Fifth peer-reviewed mammal article: August 10, 1945.].
Clethrionomys gapperi cascadensis Booth 1945.
Cited by Walter Dalquest (1948: 343 & 417), who said: "The Cascade Mountains,
according to Booth (loc. cit., p. 28), Hannegan Pass south to Mount Adams.
Marginal localities listed: Swamp Creek, Glacier Peak, McKenna, and Mt. St. Helens.
These, and other localities listed by Booth are not plotted on the ... map."
1945. Account of a Weasel in a Tree. Journal of Mammalogy 26(4): 437.
[Sixth peer-reviewed mammal: December 1945.]
1946. Notes on the Life History of the Flying Squirrel. Journal of Mammalogy 27(1):28-30.
[Seventh peer-reviewed mammal article: March 1946.]
1947. A New Yellow-pine Chipmunk from Washington. The Murrelet 28 (1): 7-8, April 30.
[Eighth peer-reviewed mammal: April 30, 1947.
Cited by Walter Dalquest (1948: 416), who said:
"The yellow-pine chipmunk of the Blue Mountains has been described as a new
subspecies, Eutamias [Tamias] amoenus albiventris Booth. Type locality
Wikiup Spring 23 miles west of Anatone, Asotin-Garfield County boundary."
Hall (1959: 303) added: "(Booth, 1947:8).-Washington: Dayton; Anatone.
Oregon: Cornucopia; Bourne; Meacham. Washington: Wallula (?); Prescott."]
1947. Systematic Review of the Land Mammals of Washington. Ph.D Dissertation
Department of Zoology, Washington State University, Pullman. 646 pages.
[Perused PhD dissertation at University of Washington (Seattle) library; part 1 & 2.]
1950. How To Know The Mammals. Wm. C. Brown Co. Dubuque, Iowa. 206 pages
[This first edition completed without use of Hall (1959).
1952. Notes on the Burrowing and Food Habits of the Olympic Marmot.
Journal of Mammalogy 33(4):495-496. [Eighth peer-reviewed mammal article: November 1952].
[Fieldwork summer & fall 1950, with student Alex Beltz; submitted October 27, 1951.]
1952. Revision of the Ranges of the Pocket Gopher of Southeastern Washington and
Northeastern Oregon and the Description of a New Sub-species of
Thomomys talpoides whitmani.
Walla Walla College Publications in Biological Sciences No. 5.
[Coauthored with Walla Walla College graduate student Harold Drake.]
1954. Biology and Life History of the Sagebrush Vole.
Walla Walla College Publications in Biological Sciences Number 4.
[Student Coauthor: William B. James; cited in Ingles (1965) mammal book.]
1957. Mammals Collected in Mexico from 1951 to 1956 by the Walla Walla College
Museum of Natural History.
Walla Walla College Publications in Biological Sciences Number 20.
[Caravan auto trips from Washington to Mexico via California and Oregon.]
1960. Biology and Breeding Habits of the Meadow Mouse, Microtus montanus, in Eastern
Washington. Walla Walla College Publications in Biological Sci. No. 29, 14p.
[This is the last mammal article published by Ernest with his student, Don R. Seidel.]
1961. How To Know The Mammals. Wm. C. Brown Co. Dubuque, Iowa. 203 pages.
[The 2nd edition at Escondido, San Diego County, California in November 1960.]
1968. Mammals of Southern California. University of California Press, Berkeley. 99 pages.
[Written after coming to Southern California as a Loma Linda University professor.]
1971. How To Know The Mammals. Wm. C. Brown Co. Dubuque, Iowa. 205 pages.
[This 3rd edition was done in California, aided by mammal book of Hall (1959).]
1982. How To Know The Mammals. Wm. C. Brown Co. Dubuque, Iowa. 198 pages.
[This final 4th edition revised with use of the mammal book of Hall (1982).]
Booth, Ernest S. 1959. Amphibians and Reptiles Collected In Mexico And Central America From 1952 to 1958 By The Walla Walla College Museum of Natural History No. 24.
Dalquest, Walter W. 1948. Mammals of Washington.
' University of Kansas Publications Museum of Natural History 2: 1-144.
Fisler, George. 196x. Keys to Mammals of the World.
Hall, E. Raymond, and Keith R. Kelson. 1959. The Mammals of North America.
Ronald Press Company., New York. 1083 pages.
Hall, E. Raymond. 1982. The Mammals of North America.
Ingles, Lloyd G. 1965. Mammals of the Pacific States. Stanford University Press, 506 p.
Goodwin, George G. 1957. A New Kinkajou from Mexico and a New Hooded Skunk from Central America.
American Museum Novitates, Number 1830. American Museum of Natural History.
Leopold, A. Starker. 1959. Wildlife in Mexico. University of California Press, Berkeley. 568 pages.
Leopold, A. Starker. 1981. North American Game Birds and Mammals.
Longhurst, W. M., Leopold, A. S. and Dasmann, R. F. 1952. A Survey of California Deer Herds, their ranges and management.
California Division of Fish and Game, Game Bulletin 6: 1-136.
Mclaughlin, Charles Albert. 1959. Mammals of Los Angeles County, California. LACM. Second Ed.
Verts, B. J. and Leslie N. Carraway. 1998. Land Mammals of Oregon. UC Press, Berkeley. 668p.
Willett, George. 1944. Mammals of Los Angeles County, California. LACM 9[4}: 34p. October.