THE PTARMIGAN 105 



exposed, and in such a position that the mother Ptarmigan 

 must sit out quite unprotected from the strong gales and 

 heavy rainstorms which so often sweep the high hills. I 

 have found it to be the case, however, that north-facing 

 hill slopes are avoided during the nesting season. The 

 nest is often lined with a few pieces of lichen — ^the " rein- 

 deer moss " being often chosen — or stems of dead grass, 

 and may contain a number of snow-white feathers from 

 the parent bird ; for the latter at the time of incubation 

 is in the midst of her first moult. I do not, however, 

 think that she deliberately uses her feathers for this 

 purpose. 



The eggs, as a rule, number from six to nine, though as 

 many as seventeen have been found. I imagine, how- 

 ever, that this exceptional clutch was the product of two 

 hens. The eggs are laid daily, and incubation is usually 

 commenced before the number is complete. Until the 

 mother bird has actually commenced to brood she covers 

 her eggs, on leaving the nest, with grass and lichen ; but 

 this covering is not done in so thorough a manner as by 

 the members of the Duck family — so imperfectly, in fact, 

 that two or three of the eggs may still remain visible. 

 The eggs so closely resemble those of the Red Grouse that 

 I doubt whether it is possible to distinguish them apart, 

 though they may at times be slightly smaller in size, the 

 measurements being 1'7 inches by I'l inches. 



As far as I have been able to determine, the period of 

 incubation is three weeks — ^that is, slightly longer than 

 that of the Red Grouse — owing, perhaps, to the lower 

 temperature which prevails on the high hills. The mother 

 Ptarmigan sits more closely than any British bird. I 

 have erected a cairn at a distance of four feet from a 

 Ptarmigan on her nest, and have secured several photo- 

 graphs of her from this improvised stand, without disturb- 

 ing her, as far as could be seen. A brooding Ptarmigan 



