Rock Ptarmigan Feet …

You have to love them, wonderful snow shoes and socks! Difficult to photograph in the shade with bright sunlight behind.

Watching the sun striking the Tors above Leysin (extra) from near the Diablerets Hut, was going to be my blip until we saw a ptarmigan family, a group of 8, so intent on feeding that they seemed not to notice us. The biting wind was in a good direction to observe them. I have added a couple of extras as these are very rare birds and their camouflage is so perfect for each season, now they are turning white ready for the snow to arrive.

« The ptarmigan is a product of the Pleistocene ice age, evolving and thriving in harsh conditions and cold blanketing most of Europe for millennia. As the ice receded, the ptarmigan found their terrain reduced to the high reaches of the Alps and Pyrenees. The unprecedented melting of the glaciers in these mountain ranges threatens their survival. Current research suggests that the ptarmigan could lose 50% of their habitat by 2050 and more than 90% by 2090. » from www.nathab.com 

Hope you are having a good weekend too, and thanks for the many gifts for yesterday’s sunset rays.