During our recent travels through Iceland, we saw a fair number of rock ptarmigan. These hardy members of the grouse family are circumpolar in their distribution, inhabiting Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of North America and Eurasia.
Favoring tundra and open, rock-strewn meadows, rock ptarmigan are well prepared for their harsh environment. Chunky and well insulated with dense plumage, they are camouflaged by a mottled coat in summer, molting to pure white (except for a black tail and eye stripe) in winter. Since they have few natural predators (primarily gyrfalcons and arctic fox in Iceland), they are rather tame, walking away as hikers approach. Nevertheless, as we witnessed ourselves, they are capable of swift, powerful flight over short distances.
Males and females form separate flocks through the colder months, pairing off in late spring to produce six to ten chicks; upon hatching, the young mature quickly and are independent of their parents within three months. Ptarmigan feed on insects, seeds, berries and the buds of willows and other shrubs, relying primarily on the latter during the long, frigid winter. Nonmigratory, they do retreat to lower elevations and protected valleys when the sun abandons their homeland.
