ptarmigan

Will Ptarmigan coming up to me out on the tundra near Barrow, Alaska. He came up and sat on my leg.

Encounter two pairs of these while walking a local low hill (850m). At first they seemed really nervous not letting me anywhere near to them unlike those in the cairngorms. Due to the recent warm weather there is only patches of snow left and it was on these amongst the many boulder fields...

A male Ptarmigan, angry at my presence, stamping its foot and glaring. A bird with attitude!

I don't know how I got this shot in focus while trying my hardest to stop falling over into more deep snow. Usually a series of thaws and freezes hardens up the snow but this year is really weird. two days later and most of the fore mentioned 3 to 4 foot snow has gone.

I don't think their can be any worse a scene then a human wobbling and rolling in thick snow that can state we don't belong in that environment, whereas this ptarmigan was very much at home.....

Svalbard Rock ptarmigan - the largest subspecies of Rock ptarmigan. In the recent years the ornithologists are discussing the possibility to single it out as a separate species.

Blending in perfectly with the recent snow fall

Photographed on 7/6/14 on Leidy Peak (12,000' +) in the Uintah Mountains in northeast Utah. This is a male

keeping cool in the snow

Spotted whilst on Glen Shee

Found this White-tailed Ptarmigan this past fall while hiking in the Alaska Mountain Range.

With snow promised over the weekend I thought I'd post this-dont you just love the feet!!!

No snow on the hills at the moment!! so,here's one from last year.

These grouse are common in higher altitudes of the Norwegian mountains.