QUESTION: What is mottled brown all over (with no big
white patches on the belly), and a red patch above the
eyes, that would be strolling across the road about
half a mile down the hill from the Crystal Mountain
Ski Resort parking lots?!?

There is dense woodland a few feet back from either
side of the road. It seems like the habitat for the
Spruce Grouse rather than the Ptarmigan. I got close
enough to easily see the very red spot above it's eye
even without binoculars. It also had the beginnings
of faint white eye stripes like the spruce grouse. It
seems like it ought to have been the blue grouse,
since they're more common, but the over-eye spot was
very red, not yellow.

Having never identified any of these three species
before, I'd love some expert advice. What is the
juvenile plumage of the male spruce grouse? Can the
blue grouse ever have a yellow over-eye spot? Is the
white-tailed ptarmigan ever found so far below the
timber line?

All input is welcome!

Thanks!

Inga

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Inga Holmquist
P.O. Box 1141
Orting, WA 98360
ingawh at yahoo.com

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