Answers to the Pinon/Pinyon Pine mystery

Well, Bobcat and Wiseowl (trail angels I stayed with in Wrightwood) have helped me not only be fed, showered, and housed for a night; but, they have solved my pinyon pine single needle vs two needle mystery. According to the research documented in the book "Conifers of California," the taxonomy of the single needle pinyon pine in CA has been, "highly controversial." It states that the Colorado Pinyon that I'm used to seeing down through the Grand Canyon region and most of the rest of the West where it is found, approaches the New York Mtns on the Nevada/CA border, but is distinctly different from the CA pinyon, and that the two to five needle varietys are merely mutations which suppress the single needle manifestation (the book excludes the Colorado Pinyon from the discussion on the basis that the CO pinyon does not occur in CA, and is biochemically distinct from the CA single needle pinyon. (other than the state line regions of the NY mtns). They seem to refer to it as a 'natural hybridization' Anywho, genetic testing as of the printing of this book (1999) was preliminary....interestingly, what appeared to be limber or bristlecone--but at far too low of elevations to me in the Laguna mtns was evidently a 4 and 5 needle hybrid of the CA pinyon. Alright, mystery solved to my satisfaction. :)