In the harsh glare of the day, comprehension of the scene was slow to come. But the frenzy had been no illusion. Rather, it had been a case of the quarrv appearing unexpectedly. The flurry of white feathers and black beaks was the rise of a flock of about 100 white-tailed ptarmigans. Wild animals in Colorado have developed a variety of methods for coping with the rigors of a high country winter.
Many birds avoid the inclement weather altogether by flying south to milder, always summer climes.
The yellowbelly marmot snuggles into a warm burrow and sleeps away the frigid temperatures and fierce blizzards. But there are a few, like the whitetailed ptarrnigan, mountain goat, snowshoe hare, and short-tail weasel, that simply adapt to the changing seasons and endure as best they can. Anywhere there is tundra in Colorado, there also will be ptarmigan. Of course, seeing these football-sized rascals is another matter. It is possible to be standing in the middle of a flock and never see a thing.