 the willow ptarmigan (lagopus lagopus) is a bird in the grouse subfamily tetraoninae of the pheasant family phasianidae. it is also known as the willow grouse and in the british isles, where it was previously believed to be a separate species, as the red grouse. it is a sedentary species, breeding in birch and other forests and moorlands in northern europe, the tundra of scandinavia, siberia, alaska and northern canada, in particular in the provinces of newfoundland and labrador. it is the state bird of alaska. in the summer the birds are largely brown, with dappled plumage, but in the winter they are white with some black feathers in their tails (british populations do not adopt a winter plumage). the species has remained little changed from the bird that roamed the tundra during the pleistocene. nesting takes place in the spring when clutches of four to ten eggs are laid in a scrape on the ground. the chicks are precocial and soon leave the nest and while they are young, both parents play a part in caring for them. the chicks eat insects and young plant growth while the adults are completely herbivorous, eating leaves, flowers, buds, seeds and berries during the summer and largely subsisting on the buds and twigs of willow and other dwarf shrubs and trees during the winter. == description == the willow ptarmigan is a medium to large ground-dwelling bird and is the most numerous of the three species of ptarmigan. males and females are about the same size, the adult length varying between  with a wingspan ranging from . the weight is . it is deep-chested and has a fairly long neck, a broad bill, short feathered legs and a moderately short rounded tail. in the summer, the male's plumage is marbled brown, with a reddish hue to the neck and breast, a black tail and white wings and
Animals_described_in_1758 Animals_that_can_change_color Birds_of_Asia Birds_of_Canada Birds_of_Europe Birds_of_the_United_States Grouse IUCN_Red_List_least_concern_species Lagopus Native_birds_of_Alaska