Rock Ptarmigan
Lagopus muta
Summary 2
The rock ptarmigan looks like a small grouse or pheasant; adults are beween 33-40.6cm/13-16in long. It has pure white plumage in winter, except for a black tail, which is present in both sexes year-round. Both sexes are barred with nondescript brown and black markings in summer, with females more coarsely marked than males. Males wait longer than females to shed the white plumage in the breeding season. This is part of the courtship display, but also leads to heavier predation of males by gyrfalcons. Males have a black streak from beak to eye, a scarlet comb near the eyes, and are generally pale on the upper body in fall. Some, but not all, females show the black eye streak. Females are nearly invisible against the tundra in summer, and are slightly smaller than males. All ptarmigans have feathered feet, which act as snowshoes, allowing the birds to walk in soft snow. The feathers may also increase insulation for these year-round arctic dwellers.
(Johnsgard, 1973; Kaufman, 1996; Weeden, 1995; Hays, 1998)
Habitat 3
Open tundra, barren and rocky slopes in Arctic and alpine areas, and relatively barren heaths and moors (AOU 1983). Nests on tundra, barren and rocky slopes in Arctic and alpine areas. The nest is a scrape lined with grasses, plants and a few feathers.
Sources and Credits
- (c) jafro77, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), https://www.flickr.com/photos/jafro/4666178242/
- Adapted by Yukon Conservation Data Centre from a work by (c) The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/31400361
- Adapted by Yukon Conservation Data Centre from a work by (c) NatureServe, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://eol.org/data_objects/28815947
More Info
Range Map
iNaturalist.ca Map
| Color | brown, white |
|---|---|
| Animal | Bird |
| Bird | ptarmigan |
