WHITE-TAILED PTARMIGAN. 169 
leased, made no effort to fly away, but waited until she 
was permitted to return to her charge. But one brood 
is raised in a year, and the chicks, when first hatched, 
are curiously striped with bands of white and blackish 
brown. The hen defends them with great courage, not 
hesitating to fly directly into the face of anybody who 
may attempt to catch one of her brood, and strikes as vio- 
lently as she is able with her wings. At other times 
she uses all the artifices common to game birds to draw 
one away from the vicinity of her young. 
By the latter part of August the brood is pretty fully 
grown, unless from some cause the birds have been 
hatched later than usual. They are delicate at first, and 
doubtless many perish from severe weather, or by getting 
their downy plumage wet, which generally has a fatal 
effect. This Ptarmigan, also called the White, Snow, or 
Mountain Quail, by the miners and others who penetrate 
its retreats, feeds upon leaves and tender stalks of vari- 
ous plants growing in the Alpine regions amid which 
it dwells, also on insects of different kinds, and in 
winter on the buds and leaves of firs and pines. Its 
flesh is much lighter than that of other Ptarmigan, and is 
about as palatable as is theirs, which sometimes is pretty 
tasteless. When much hunted the White-tailed Ptar- 
migan becomes very wild, and it is difficult to approach 
it within shot. It makes no extended flights, but 
runs on ahead, dodging behind rocks and bushes, stop- 
ping at times to watch its pursuer, and occasionally fly- 
ing a short distance so as just to keep beyond the range 
of the gun. If persistently followed for a considerable 
period, it is then very apt to remove itself from the local- 
ity, at least for a brief period. A solitary bird is not apt 
to try and make its escape by flight, and can be flushed 
with difficulty, generally trying to steal away quietly, 
