Subject: Re: Ptarmigans (was Re: Addendum - Thunder birds)
Date: Sep 12 00:45:31 1996
From: "Jack Bowling" - jcbowling at mindlink.bc.ca


Mary Poss wrote -

>> I was also somewhat baffled by the "ptarmigan". Of the 2 birds
>>that I saw clearly one had baring all the way down the central tail
>>feathers, the other (the one that fanned its tail) had lateral black
>>feathers. The former bird had white wings patches low over the abdomen.
>>The beak was quite short on these birds and both had dull reddish, small
>>eye patches that were somewhat caudally displaced. These seem to have many
>>characteristics of rock ptarmigan but not all. So... the questions. Can
>>grouse and ptarmigan hybridize? Would ptarmigan be turning white by now?
>>(The snowshoe hare that I saw on this trip had not started to turn yet).

Then Dennis Paulson wrote -

>White-tailed Ptarmigan start to change color in September, I think, but
>they wouldn't be very far along in that molt by now.

I have in front of me No. 68 of the _Birds of North America_ series of
monographs on White-tailed Ptarmigan by C. E. Braun, K. Martin, and L.A.
Robb written in 1993. In the _Appearance_ section under the sub-section
_Molts and Plumages_ they state: "Ptarmigan undergo almost continual molt
from late Apr to early Nov." They go on to describe no fewer than seven(!)
plumage sequences of this species. In the _Supplemental I Plumage_ section
they state: "Occurs in both hatching-year and older birds, starting mid to
late Aug (adult males and unsuccessful hens earliest, chicks and hens
last); completed early to mid Oct (adult males, unsuccesful hens) to late
Oct-early Nov (chicks, brood hens)." Under the _Distinguishing
Characteristics_ section they state: "May be confused with Rock and Willow
Ptarmigan, but can be differentiated from either of these species by small
body size and distinctive white retrices." Since comparing body sizes
would require previous experience with the various ptarmigan species,
Dennis is right, Mary - you're gonna have to flush that thing!!!

- Jack

Jack Bowling
Prince George, BC
jcbowling at mindlink.bc.ca