LIFE AT HIGH ALTITUDES HINGSTON 347 



iii*^ animals on the earth. They live in islands of broken rock sur- 

 rounded by snow and ice. There is no sign of vegetation or living 

 creature near them, and for food they eat one another. 



Nothing illustrates better this high-altitude struggle than the 

 manner in which animals secure a livelihood on tracts of snow and 

 ice. We found an interesting fauna on the Rongbuk glacier at an 

 altitude of 17,000 feet. The surface of this glacier was deeply fis- 

 sured and to a large extent covered with broken rock. It seemed at 

 first sight utterly barren, yet some grass grew amongst the rocky 

 fragments, and patches of lichen appeared on the stones. Certain 

 animals found existence in this desolation. I have seen a herd of 

 wild sheep sitting on the glacier surrounded by pinnacles of ice and 

 stones. Certain birds used to frequent the icy tract. The snowcock 

 came down to it from the sides of the gorges, perhaps to find a little 

 food on the surface moraine. I saw Guldenstadt's redstart high up 

 on the glacier where nothing existed but debris and ice. A little 

 stint, while migrating through the gorge, halted for a rest near a 

 glacier pool. A tortoise-shell butterflj'^ was sometimes seen on the 

 glacier at 17,000 feet. A number of protectively colored moths used 

 to live on its surface; moraine. Beetles and small spiders found a 

 i-'helter on it. It was the home of some minute flies. Even in the 

 deep blue pools on the surface of the ice some creatures managed to 

 secure a place. These pools were so cold that after sweeping them 

 with a net the gauze remained frozen into a rigid bag. Yet in 

 these pools were the larvas of both stone flies and may flies, and 

 other equally delicate kinds skated on the surface of the water. 



We may sum up with the impression that the struggle is fierce in 

 the high altitudes of the Mount Everest region. AVe have seen that 

 numbers escape death through protective coloration; that many 

 kinds have devices for escaping the strong winds; that at certain 

 seasons the struggle for food is intense ; that some birds are specially 

 equipped to dig into the soil; that other birds are forced to change 

 their habits of life, and some to form communities with mammals; 

 that burrowing and hibernation are the great resorts by which ani- 

 mals escape the extreme cold; and finally that the ceaseless and 

 relentless competition has driven animals to extreme altitudes, where 

 the^^ live above the snow line and on the surface of the glaciers in 

 one of the most inhospitable regions of the earth. 



