White-tailed ptarmigan
White-tailed ptarmigan | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Galliformes |
Family: | Phasianidae |
Genus: | Lagopus |
Species: | L. leucura
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Binomial name | |
Lagopus leucura (Richardson, 1831)
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White-tailed ptarmigan range[2] | |
Synonyms | |
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The white-tailed ptarmigan (Lagopus leucura), also known as the snow quail, is the smallest
Taxonomy and etymology
The white-tailed ptarmigan was given the scientific name Tetrao (Lagopus) leucurus by the Arctic explorer
The genus name Lagopus is derived from Ancient Greek lagos (λαγως), meaning "hare", + pous (πους), "foot", in reference to the bird's feathered legs. The species name leucura was for a long time misspelt leucurus, in the erroneous belief that the ending of Lagopus denotes masculine gender. However, as the Ancient Greek term λαγωπους is of feminine gender, and the species name has to agree with that, the feminine leucura is correct.[5] The species name leucura is derived from the Latinized version of the Greek leukos, meaning "white" and oura, meaning "tail", in reference to the bird's permanently white tail.[6]
The white-tailed ptarmigan has five recognized subspecies:[7]
- L. l. altipetens (Osgood, 1901)
- L. l. leucura (Richardson, 1831)
- L. l. peninsularis (Chapman, 1902)
- L. l. rainierensis (Taylor W, 1920)
- L. l. saxatilis (Cowan, 1939)
Description
The white-tailed ptarmigan is the smallest of the ptarmigans and the smallest bird in the grouse family. It is a stocky bird with rounded wings, square-ended tail, small black beak and short legs with feathering extending to the toes.
Distribution
The white-tailed ptarmigan is an alpine species, a permanent resident of the high mountains above or near the timber line. It occupies open country and flies a great deal more than forest grouse, but still prefers running to flying. It ranges from Alaska and western Canada south to northern New Mexico. Males return from their wintering areas to establish territories on spruce-willow timber line breeding grounds in April. Females arrive in early May and pairs are formed.[14]
The white-tailed ptarmigan is the only bird in North America to reside permanently in the alpine zone.[10] Its habitat includes areas of boulders, krummholz, snowfields, rock slides, frost-heaved soil and upland herbage.[10][11] Even in winter it stays in high valleys and mountain slopes where alder, willow, birch and spruce poke through the snow cover.[11]
The white-tailed ptarmigan was introduced into the
The white-tailed ptarmigan was first introduced into Oregon's Wallowa Mountains with 36 birds taken from Colorado and Washington in September 1967. A second set of 54 birds was released in September 1968 that were supplied from Colorado and British Columbia.[16] Although a few of the birds were observed in the spring and summer of 1969 the effort to establish a population in Oregon was ultimately unsuccessful.[17]
Diet
This herbivorous bird's diet varies seasonally. Nitrogen-rich
Breeding
White-tailed ptarmigan males are usually monogamous and remain with the same mate for one breeding season. To attract females, a male will strut and display his tail feathers.[20] The female builds a simple scrape nest on the ground, while the male acts as a sentry to guard the area.[18] The nest is a shallow depression in a snow-free area, generally protected from the wind and is softened with grasses and a few feathers.[21] One side of the nest generally provides a quick escape route.[18]
A clutch consists of two to eight eggs, which retain a cinnamon color for most of the incubation period, but develop brown spots when they are nearly ready to hatch.
Ptarmigan chicks begin their lives eating
Adaptations and status
The white-tailed ptarmigan is well-camouflaged when on the ground. In his pioneering 1909 book on the subject,
There is perhaps no other bird which moults as gradually as the Ptarmigan, and this fact goes very far to strengthen the supposition that it has developed a peculiarly fluid and perfect system of protective coloration. Figs. 8, 9, 10 and 39 show White-tailed Ptarmigans, of the Rocky Mountains, in winter and transitional plumages... Supremely beautiful and potent is the grass-pattern of this same species in summer plumage... This pattern ... is achieved by light-brown marginal bands, with a few small internal spots, on the dark feathers of the upper parts; the predominance of light and dark being gradually reversed as the lower breast is approached. The belly is entirely white, as are the quill feathers of the wings and tail.
— Thayer[22]
The white-tailed ptarmigan has feathers located on its feet to serve as protection from the extreme cold often experienced in the alpine tundra environment. In addition, these birds have feathers around their nostrils to warm the air prior to entry into the respiratory tract.
The white-tailed ptarmigan is listed as being of "
References
- ^ . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
- ^ BirdLife International and NatureServe (2014) Bird Species Distribution Maps of the World. 2012. Lagopus leucura. In: IUCN 2015. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2015.2. http://www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded on 10 July 2015.
- ^ "White-tailed Ptarmigan (Lagopus leucurus)". The Internet Bird Collection. Retrieved 2013-07-13.
- PMID 12554459.
- ^ David, Normand; Gosselin, Michel (2002). "The grammatical gender of avian genera". Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. 122 (4): 257–282.
- ^ a b c d e f "White-tailed Ptarmigan". Montana Outdoors Pursuit. Archived from the original on 2011-07-02. Retrieved 2013-02-05.
- ^ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2021). "Pheasants, partridges, francolins". IOC World Bird List Version 11.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
- ^ a b Gough, Gregory. "White-tailed ptarmigan Lagopus leucurus". Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter. USGS. Retrieved 2013-07-10.
- ^ a b c d Braun, C. E.; Martin, K.; Robb, L. A. (1993). "White-tailed Ptarmigan". All about birds. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Retrieved 2013-02-04.
- ^ S2CID 38655785.
- ^ a b c "White-Tailed Ptarmigan (Lagopus leucurus)". Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Retrieved 2013-02-05.
- ^ "White-tailed Ptarmigan". World Bird Info. Retrieved 2013-02-04.
- ^ "White-tailed ptarmigan". Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. Archived from the original on 2016-12-24. Retrieved 2013-07-10.
- ^ "White-tailed Ptarmigan (Lagopus leucurus)". Colorado Partners in Flight. 2000. Retrieved 2013-02-05.
- JSTOR 2845146.
- ^ Shay, Ron E., ed. (1969-10-01). "Oregon State Game Commission Bulletin No. 10 Vol. 24: Ptarmigan Spotted". p. 2.
- ^ "THE PTARMIGAN". grousepartners.org. North American Grouse Partnership. Retrieved 2021-03-18.
- ^ a b c d e f g Benedict, A. D. “Islands in the Sky: Alpine Tundras.” The Naturalist’s Guide to the Southern Rockies. Golden: Fulcrum Publishing, 2008. 574-626.
- ^ PMID 21680497.
- ^ S2CID 53170256.
- ^ Davies, Mike (2010). "Photograph of nest, white-tailed ptarmigan". Retrieved 2013-02-05.
- ^ Thayer, Gerald H.;Thayer, Abbott H. (1909). Concealing Coloration in the Animal Kingdom: An Exposition of the Laws of Disguise Through Color and Pattern; Being a Summary of Abbott H. Thayer’s Disclosures. Macmillan, New York.
External links
- Utah DNR Archived 2016-12-24 at the Wayback Machine
- USGS
- Animal Diversity Web
- White-tailed Ptarmigan photo gallery VIREO