PTARMIGAN. 325 



is called Perdiz hlanca. It is found in Russia, and nearly 

 all over Scandinavia and its islands. By the parties employ- 

 ed on the various Northern expeditions which have been 

 sent out from this country, these birds were found at Green- 

 land ; on the west side of Baffin^'s Bay ; in the country south 

 of Barrow's Strait ; and on the east of Prince Regent's Inlet; 

 on Melville Peninsula ; at Port Bowen ; and, on the last 

 voyage, one pair was seen on the east side of the Peninsula 

 of Boothia, latitude 71° nearly, and three or four more were 

 seen at Felix Harbour ; it is also an inhabitant of the north- 

 ern part of North America. 



It is, however, nowhere more plentiful, according to Mr. 

 Lloyd, than over all the more northern parts of Scandi- 

 navia. " Their usual resorts are the Fyalls, or lofty moun- 

 tains, whose summits are destitute of trees ; but during heavy 

 snow storms these birds not unfrequently descend to the low 

 country. This has occasionally happened in some of the 

 Norwegian valleys, at which time they have been seen perched 

 in such numbers in the birch trees, that the latter seemed to 

 be altogether clothed in white." I have mentioned that 

 Scandinavia produces a second species of Ptarmigan, besides 

 that which is identical with our own Scottish bird. This 

 second species is the L. saliceti, or Willow Ptarmigan, of 

 some authors, the L. subalpina and Dal-ripa of M. Nilsson, 

 the Swedish naturalist, and is a bird of larger size than the 

 other, which, as before mentioned, is called by M. Nilsson 

 L. alpina, on account of its generally inhabiting a higher 

 range of ground. Linnseus met with both these species when 

 on his Lapland Tour, and under date of July 30th, says, 

 " The little Alpine variety of the Ptarmigan was now accom- 

 panied by its young. I caught one of these, upon which the 

 hen ran so close to me, that I could easily have taken her 

 also. She kept continually jumping round and round me ; 

 but I thought it a pity to deprive the tender brood of their 



