The terrestrial mammals and birds of Nortii-East Greenland. 



83 



of the ptarmigan begins, the ermine will make little excursions 

 along steep mountain sides, across heaps of stones and smaller stret- 

 ches of meadow land and up through partly snow-filled glens, often 

 following the track of the ptarmigan. Yet these wanderings are 

 rarely extended to more than about one kilometer, or a little more, 

 and the ermine quickly returns to its hole in the hard frozen snow- 

 drift or to its cosy dwelling among the down-fallen stones. The 

 lemming which will also venture out in the light now and then, is 

 still the most important, not to say the only prey of the ermine. 



Fig. 21. Typical ermine locality. March 1908. 



As far as I was able to judge, the pursuit of the ptarmigan was 

 namely carried on more as a kind of sport than as a useful chase, 

 and probably it is a mere chance when the otherwise so dexterous 

 little beast of prey succeeds in catching a grown-up ptarmigan. 

 The same may be said about the hunting of full-grown snow-bunt- 

 ings which I have seen the ermine pursuing in vain several times. 



Without being able to found my opinion on any positive obser- 

 vations, I still feel certain that the Greenland ermine is a no less dan- 

 gerous enemy to leverets and broods of birds than the European one. 



In the summer time at any rate the animal will stroll about 

 very much in the open air, though, as before mentioned, it does 

 not often wander far away from its stationary abode. 



6* 



