So far I have had several votes for white-tailed ptarmigans, some votes for
Clark's nutcracker, and some for grey jay. My guess is the white-tailed
ptarmigan, because they were quite white, and I did not see any black wings
(they fluttered their wings a little as they hopped down), and I think I
would know a jay if I saw one, just from the shape. These were shaped more
like large doves, hence my thought that they might be ptarmigans (they were
also silent - is a grey jay as noisy as other jays?). Since Dennis asked,
they did seem to be in a small group of 3-4 birds together - not sure how
that affects the ID. I was unsure, however, because they seemed a little
out of their accustomed elevation (we were probably at about 5000 ft),
although Gene points out there have been a few records of ptarmigans below
the treeline. I would be very interested in any other sightings of any of
the three birds above in the Stevens Pass area.

Teresa Michelsen
temi461 at ecy.wa.gov
----------
From: tweeters
To: Multiple recipients of list
Subject: Re: winter mountain birding
Date: Fri, Dec 30, 1994 4:06PM

Dale Goble:
>Wouldn't Teresa's white bird be a White-tailed Ptarmigan?

Ahhhh...Bingo? An Oregon boy wouldn't think of that, but they're
found in Washington's North Cascades, aren't they?

-Don Baccus-