52 PROCEEDINGS OF THE X\T/n\ I/. MUSEUM. vol. 38. 



Grinnell had, in the course of his work on Alaskan birds, become 

 interested in the problem presented by the willow ptarmigan. I 

 explained to him the general results which I had attained from the 

 study of the material in Washington, and urged him to name the 

 southern Alaskan form, which he has done. As I have had no oppor- 

 tunity of again taking up the question, I give in the following para- 

 graph.-, without change, the notes I made in 1907, hoping that they 

 may prove of some value. 



A careful examination of the material available in Washington, 

 consisting of L15 specimens of North American willow ptarmigan, 

 has convinced me that there are at least two well-marked forms of 

 this bird inhabiting the country, in addition to t he subspecies found 

 in Newfoundland (Lagopus lagopus dlleni Stejneger), which appear to 

 be readily distinguishable from birds from Norway. I have not been 

 able to examine specimens from eastern North America south of 

 Labrador, except from New foundland, but the indications are that a 

 race inhabits this district which is similar to Lagopus lagopus alex- 

 andrse, but which will probably turn out to be a new form peculiar 

 to t he region. 



There seem to be slight, but apparently constant, differences 

 between birds from various parts of the northwest, which I have 

 considered collectively as Lagopus lagopus alexandrse. For instance, 

 t he bird inhabit ing t he mountains of southeastern Alaska, differs from 

 thai of the coasts of the Alaska peninsula and the islands adjacent, 

 while t hese, again, are not quite t he same as others from the coast of 

 Norton Sound. With but 32 specimens from the entire Territory of 

 Alaska, however, I cannot hope to solve the problem. At any rate, 

 although perfectly distinct from L. I. albus, L. I. alexandra exhibits 

 much more plasticity than the well-marked and comparatively 

 stable northern form. The color comparisons were made from 

 b_' specimens from the Shumagin Islands and (i from Alaska in the 

 pei feited spring plumage, and over t w ice as many from northern Lab- 

 rador, taken a i the same time and apparently in t he same plumage. 



1 have examined specimens from the following localities: Twenty 

 from New foundland, 60 from Labrador, ."> from central arctic North 

 America, 18 from the mainland of Alaska, _' from Kadiak Island, and 

 u from the Shumagin Islands. Three examples from Norway were 

 regarded as true Lagopus lagopus lagopus. 



of these specimens, all those from Labrador and central arctic 

 America, with others from Point Harrow , Kol/ebiie Sound, Cape Lis- 



bourne, Kowak River, Yukon River, and near St. Michaels, belong to 



a well-differentiated race, with the beak very large, high, and stout, 

 the culmen strongly arched, and usually with a prominent ridge from 

 the inferior cornel of i he maxilla to in front of the nost ril. They are 

 identical among themselves, it being impossible to tell from the e.x- 



