the white-tailed ptarmigan, also known as the snow quail, is a mountainous-dwelling bird and the smallest member of the grouse family. they are found at high altitudes in the continental united states, canada, and alaska. they have distinct ‘cryptic’ plumage, meaning that their plumage differs drastically throughout the year; during warm summers, they are speckled brown and black, going through an intermediary mottled phase before fully molting into their snow-white winter plumage. they primarily feed on insects and plant matter. their eggs are laid in a simple depression in the ground; the chicks are precocial and leave the nest soon after hatching.