108 BRITAIN'S BIRDS AND THEIR NESTS. 



mountain snows. The Ptarmigan is rather smaller in size 

 than the Grouse, and may always be readily distinguished 

 by the fact that the primary wing quills are white in 

 all plumages except that of the chick. The Ptarmigan, 

 however, goes through no less than three distinct phases 

 of plumage annually, and in each the sexes present con- 

 siderable differences ! The male in autumn differs from the 

 male in summer, as shown in the plate, chiefly in having 

 the upper-parts gray, lined with black. In winter the 

 plumage is mostly white ; but all the tail-feathers, except 

 the central pair, remain dark, and there is a black line 

 through the eye. The red wattle and black bill also 

 remain. In summer the plumage of the hen is chiefly 

 yellowish brown barred with black, and the autumn plum- 

 age is browner than the males. In winter it lacks the 

 black line through the eye which characterises the male at 

 that season, and the red wattle is always absent. 



Unlike the Red-Grouse, the Ptarmigan is widely distri- 

 buted. It is most abundant on the Scandinavian Qelds, 

 but is also found in northern Russia, the Alps, and the 

 Pyrenees, The nearly related Rock-Ptarmigan inhabits 

 suitable portions of Greenland and North America, and 

 there are other species. Within the British Isles, the 

 Ptarmigan is confined to the Scottish Highlands, where it 

 is almost entirely restricted in summer to the highest 

 levels, the barren ' region of stones *" above the limit of 

 even heather growth. In autumn the birds ' pack,"" and in 

 winter seek rather lower levels. There is very little evi- 

 dence to support the assertion that the Ptarmigan was 

 formerly found in the southern portion of Great Britain, 

 and the same may be said of Ireland. The identification 

 of certain bones found in Irish cave-deposits is regarded 

 as very far from definite. A recent attempt to introduce 

 the species into the north of Ireland met with no success. 



