128 PTARMIGAN. 



move/ But the male, it would appear, leaves the education of the 

 young to the hen bird, re-joining them all again later in the season, 

 and then several families pack together. 



The eggs, from seven or eight to twelve in number, of a regular 

 oval form, are of a white, yellowish white, greenish white, or reddish 

 colour, blotted and spotted with brown and brownish black. 



The ground part of one is pale yellowish white, covered all over 

 with small brown spots and large dark brown blots, chiefly about the 

 middle and towards the smaller end. 



A second is of a dull whitish colour, spotted with very small dark 

 brown spots, and marbled over with larger ones. 



The ground of a third is chiefly composed of minute yellowish orange 

 spots, with a few large blots of dark brown upon it, and several smaller 

 ones. 



A fourth is of a very dark grey, marbled with dark reddish brown 

 all over. 



