THE PTARMIGAN 127 



weary and benumbed by cold, they were utterly incapable 

 of reaching shelter even if aware of the line to be followed. 

 A heavy fall of snow commencing as we at last took leave 

 of the mountain-top, it is unlikely that any tidings would 

 have been learned concerning their fate till the snows had 

 melted from the hills in the following summer." 



In their colouring Ptarmigan vary considerably, and 

 I am inclined to suspect that the rock Ptarmigan — Lagopus 

 rupestris-— which is generally held to be a distinct species, 

 and which is reputed to have occurred in Sutherland 

 and Perthshire, is merely a variation of the normal type. 

 Lagopus rupestris is more rufous brown in colour than the 

 common Ptarmigan, but in 1912 I found a hen bird sitting 

 exceedingly hard on the lower ground of Braeriach, which 

 in her colouring bore every resemblance to Lagopus rupes- 

 tris, but which was, I have little doubt, merely a variation 

 of Lagopus mutus. The total length of Lagopus mutus 

 is between 14 and 15 inches, the female being about half 

 an inch shorter than the male, and the birds slightly 

 smaller than the Red Grouse. The length of wing is 7*6 

 inches, and the weight 20 ounces. 



Distribution. — The Ptarmigan is a bird of extremely 

 wide distribution, from the high hills of Scandinavia to 

 the Urals. In North Siberia it is represented by Lagopus 

 rupestris, which is found as far north as 71 1° N. latitude. 

 In Iceland a sub-species — Lagopus rupestris islandorum — 

 is found. The rock Ptarmigan is met with in Greenland, 

 North America, and North, Central, and Eastern Asia ; 

 and similar sub-species exist in Newfoundland, Labrador, 

 Canada, and Alaska. The true Ptarmigan is found in the 

 rhododendron region of the Alps, in the Pyrenees, Tyrol, 

 Styria, and Carinthia, and on the Urals above the limit 

 of the growth of the birch. The eastern range is difficult 

 to determine. It has been obtained from the Chinese 

 Altai range at 6000 feet and round Lake Baikal at 9000 



