184 AMERICAN GAME BIRD SHOOTING 
ridiculous. At night they will occasionally burrow 
in the snow, but only during high winds or very cold 
weather, the usual way of resting being the small 
hollow mentioned. Another rather remarkable thing 
in connection with ptarmigan is the apparent dispro- 
portion of the sexes. Out of the many thousands that 
I have killed and examined, only about twenty-five per 
cent. were males. In winter they prefer low valleys and 
the borders of rivers and lakes and dense willow 
patches, but as the season advances they seek the 
higher ranges, choosing those that face the midday 
sun. When flying over water, as they often do in 
crossing bays or large rivers, they keep very near the 
surface, just about a foot or so above it. Over land 
the reverse is the case, for sometimes they rise high 
over the tops of the tallest trees. The most remarkable 
thing about them, however, is their seasonal change of 
plumage. In 1885 I had the pleasure of attending the 
meetings of the American Ornithologists’ Union, in 
New York. At one of the meetings a very interesting 
paper was read by Dr. Stejneger on this subject. The 
doctor exhibited two specimens which came from New- 
foundland, and which, in his opinion, were a sub- 
species confined to the island. This distinction was 
based particularly on the coloration of the primaries. 
The birds shown had nearly all the tips of the pri- 
maries black. Since my return I have taken special 
pains to examine a great number of birds. On those 
killed prior to 15th November I found the same 
coloration, more or less, as on the species shown, but 
