MOUNTAIN FAUNAS 89 
prey since the introduction of sheep into that area. At 
first confining itself to dead sheep, the bird is stated now 
to kill diving animals with blows of its powerful beak. 
As is to be expected from the conditions, game 
birds are frequent on mountains. Thus in the Alps we 
find the ptarmigan, and it is also found on the other 
mountain ranges of Central Europe, on most of which 
the black grouse or capercaillie is found. In the 
mountain ranges of South Europe generally the Greek 
partridge (Caccabis saxatilis) lives. To the pheasant 
family belong the snow-partridge (Lerwa nivicola) of 
the Upper Himalayas, and the very large snow-cock 
(T'etraogallus himalayensis) of the Himalayas and Tibet. 
Other examples might be given, but these sufficiently 
indicate the two essential facts—that some of the game 
birds of the tundra and pine forests extend to the 
mountain ranges of the interior, and that the great 
elevated area in Central Asia has its peculiar game birds, 
as it has its peculiar ungulates and its peculiar rodents. 
In regard to other types of birds, a few words may 
suffice. In the Alps the commonest member of the 
crow family is the Alpine chough (Graculus alpinus), 
smaller than the common form, and having a yellow 
instead of a red beak. In the pine forest of mountains, 
especially in the Tyrol, occurs the citril finch (Chryso- 
mitris citrinella), while high up on the Alps is found 
the beautiful black and white snow-finch (Monti- 
fringilla nivalis), allied forms of which also occur on 
the mountains of Central Asia. Both in the Alps and 
in Central Asia is found the curious wall-creeper (Z'icho- 
droma muraria), which lives on insects and spiders, 
found by probing in rocky. crevices. In shape and 
flight this bird has a remarkable resemblance to a large 
butterfly, as it hovers over the rocks, using its long 
