THE WILD FOWL AND GAME ANIMALS OF ALASKA 123 



although, to tell the truth, they are about the poorest flavored 

 of the American grouse. Their handsome summer plumage of 

 mottled brown gives way in winter to one of snowy white. In 

 winter, in the valley of the Kuskokwim the ptarmigan called 

 willow grouse gather in large flocks. During my sledge jour- 

 neys I sometimes encountered flocks of hundreds among the 

 patches of scrubby willows, and when flushed it seemed as if 

 the snowy surface of the ground had suddenly burst up and 

 taken wing. 



When the first mossy knolls appear in spring the willow grouse 

 begins to lose its snowy winter dress. At first a few brown feath- 

 ers show about the base of the bill and gradually increase in 



EMPEROR GOOSE 



number until the entire head becomes brown while the body is 

 still white. This progressive change keeps pace with the melt- 

 ing snow, and with the disappearance of the last dri its the last 

 white feather has been dropped and the bird is in full summer 

 garb. The willow grouse begins its courtship in May, with the ap- 

 pearance of the first brown feathers, and it is vigorously carried 

 on with loud challenging notes of defiance, accompanied by many 

 fierce rough-and-tumble fights. When the ground is mostly bare, 

 the snow remaining only in scattered drifts, the males choose 

 these white patches as the stage upon which to strut and ruffle 

 for the admiration of their female friends. In the tundras they 

 may be seen and heard on all sides as they fly up with stiffened 



