56



Mr. C. Barnby Smith,



The cocks are wonderfully tame at this time of year and

•often sit on a lava rock within a few yards of a passer by, and

make a weird croak not altogether unsuggestive of the affliction

of “ mal-de-mer.” It is wonderful how the plumage of the cock

Ptarmigan seems to tone with the surroundings. It is illegal to

take Ptarmigan in Iceland until September, and later in the year

they grow very wild.


A very courteous Icelandic farmer accordingly promised

to try and capture me some birds in September. I myself had to

return to England in mid July, and on my return I despatched to

Iceland string netting to catch the Ptarmigan, wire netting to

make an aviary pending the sailing of the ship, and lastly I sent

many sorts of likely and unlikely foods in the hope that some

would be appreciated.


After some difficulty seven Ptarmigan were netted early in

September but they declined at first to take readily to artificial

food. My Icelandic friend accordingly collected them some

natural food for a time and gradually got them to take more

and more of the artificial.


In a letter which he sent me with the birds he says:

“ What I call grass leaves which the Ptarmigan like is called in

“ Latin Drycis octopeLala, and heather Betula nana. They like

“ also very much Poligonum vivi-parium. The berries I send

“with the birds are grown on Uva ursi. The other kind of

“berries the Ptarmigan are fond of are growing on what they

“ call in Latin Empetrum nigrum, Vaccinium uliginosum and V.

myrtillusP


The idea of sending bear-berries to give the birds a little

natural food aboard ship seemed to me excellent, and the birds

stood the voyage well.


On arrival they were already in a three quarters winter

plumage, and the effect of change of latitude and climate on

their future plumage will, I venture to think, be of interest to

those who care for game birds.


A few days after arrival I pinioned the Ptarmigan (losing

one as the direct result) and turned them down into a large grass

uncovered run. I feed them on small seeds (a mixture known as

Chiklco,”) dari and a few berries. They are very fond of the



