WHITE-TAILED PTARMIGAN. 1 71 



gregated together, but even in these localities I am not 

 aware that these flocks keep unbroken during the winter. 

 It would appear to be more an incident of the breeding 

 season. The males are very pugnacious, and during the 

 period of courtship desperate battles frecjuently occur 

 when two cocks happen to meet. In winter, when pur- 

 sued, this Ptarmigan will dive into the snow, and doubt- 

 less, like the Rufifed Grouse and other gallinaceous 

 birds, it may be accustomed to enter a snow bank to 

 sleep and obtain protection in that way both from the 

 severity of the weather and from whatever enemies may 

 be prowling amid the lofty heights among which it 

 dwells. 



LA GOP US LEUCURUS. 



Geographical D/stribufwft. — High range of mountains from 

 Liard River, British America, and Western United States to 

 New Mexico. 



Adult Male. — Upper parts, golden gray or grayish buff, irreg- 

 ularly barred and vermiculated with black; top of head, black, 

 with tips of feathers light brown; lores, black; rest of head and 

 neck, finely barred with black and buff, and feathers tipped with 

 white; cheeks, chin, and throat, white, spotted with black, only 

 sparsely on the throat; breast, barred with black and umber- 

 brown; flanks, similar, but black bars finer and very irregular, 

 and black vermiculations; rest of lower parts, white; legs and 

 toes covered with white feathers; tail, white; bill, black. Total 

 length, about 12^ inches; wing, 6^. 



Adult Female. — Resembles the male, but with perhaps more 

 buff. There seems to be. however, very little difference in the 

 coloring of the sexes. Dimensions, about the same as those of 

 the male. 



