White-tailed Ptarmigan
| Lagopus leucura | Order: Galliformes | Family: Phasianidae (Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies) |
This exquisite bird, our only nesting ptarmigan in the Lower-48, looks like a lichen-colored rock in breeding plumage, and like a blob of snow (with a tiny black dot–the eye) in winter. The very first one I ever saw, on a bus trip through the alpine zone of Rocky Mountain National Park during a National Audubon convention in 1979, was standing not far from the road right out my window, when we made a brief stop to scan the area. The leader said these birds look like rocks, and I said, “Like that one?” Yep–I’m the one who found it. Tragically, this was long before I was taking photos, and I’ve never seen another in summer.
The two other times I’ve seen this wondrous ptarmigan have been at Loveland Pass in the White River National Forest. The first time, two ptarmigans were a short hike from the parking area. The second time, a male flew right up to us at the very edge of the parking lot.
White-tailed Ptarmigans nest above the timberline in the alpine tundra of western mountains. They are the only birds in North America that spend their entire life cycle in these very high elevations. The ptarmigan’s generic name, *Lagopus”, means “rabbit foot,” because of the dense feathering on their feet. They take shelter and roost inside snowbanks.