Willow Ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus) - Nome, AK
This scene may look calm and tranquil but it was anything but. I was exhausted and barely able to stand after being awake for about 18 hours straight. I spotted this tiny head in the distance....what seemed like miles away in the open tundra. So I began walking out there around 1:30am.
Let me tell you, it is not easy walking through the tundra (looks dry on top but wet on the bottom and your feet sink in) what is really a short distance becomes a long arduous one especially when you have a camera and tripod and don't want to break an ankle.
Well when I got out there I began to be eaten alive by mosquitoes that seemed to have been starving to death. There was a Whimbrel and a Long-tailed Jaeger out there, tons of Lapland Longspurs singing their heads off. This grouse that was making the most hilarious sounds (if you haven't heard what they sound like click here www.youtube.com/watch?v=snhDClOBh_I). I honestly can't help laughing when I hear them. He was being dive-bombed by a Parasitic and Long-tailed Jaeger... I was screaming out in agony from the little vipers. I left one of the buggers in the photo for nostalgia. I could not see out of my bug net and hat to take a bloody picture. So I ended up having to lift up the net to get the camera to my eye and the only part of my body not bitten got covered in bites from my neck up. The Jaegers were now no longer bugging the grouse. He was shaking his head off trying to rid himself of the same fate as I. I felt sorry for him at least I had a net.... not that it did me any good when I wanted to take a photo. The Repellent with Deet I sprayed only seemed to attract them. I'm still amazed these killer mosquitoes can bite through gortex! Well I had to retreat and got bitten all the way back to the car. I itched for about 2 weeks after getting back from Nome. Good times... would I do it again? For sure, it was worth it. However, next time, I'm wearing a full body bug suit, no matter how crazy I look. :)
The Willow Ptarmigan is the most numerous of the Ptarmigan species and is the state bird of Alaska.
Willow Ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus) - Nome, AK
This scene may look calm and tranquil but it was anything but. I was exhausted and barely able to stand after being awake for about 18 hours straight. I spotted this tiny head in the distance....what seemed like miles away in the open tundra. So I began walking out there around 1:30am.
Let me tell you, it is not easy walking through the tundra (looks dry on top but wet on the bottom and your feet sink in) what is really a short distance becomes a long arduous one especially when you have a camera and tripod and don't want to break an ankle.
Well when I got out there I began to be eaten alive by mosquitoes that seemed to have been starving to death. There was a Whimbrel and a Long-tailed Jaeger out there, tons of Lapland Longspurs singing their heads off. This grouse that was making the most hilarious sounds (if you haven't heard what they sound like click here www.youtube.com/watch?v=snhDClOBh_I). I honestly can't help laughing when I hear them. He was being dive-bombed by a Parasitic and Long-tailed Jaeger... I was screaming out in agony from the little vipers. I left one of the buggers in the photo for nostalgia. I could not see out of my bug net and hat to take a bloody picture. So I ended up having to lift up the net to get the camera to my eye and the only part of my body not bitten got covered in bites from my neck up. The Jaegers were now no longer bugging the grouse. He was shaking his head off trying to rid himself of the same fate as I. I felt sorry for him at least I had a net.... not that it did me any good when I wanted to take a photo. The Repellent with Deet I sprayed only seemed to attract them. I'm still amazed these killer mosquitoes can bite through gortex! Well I had to retreat and got bitten all the way back to the car. I itched for about 2 weeks after getting back from Nome. Good times... would I do it again? For sure, it was worth it. However, next time, I'm wearing a full body bug suit, no matter how crazy I look. :)
The Willow Ptarmigan is the most numerous of the Ptarmigan species and is the state bird of Alaska.