Alps - Pyrenees - Lot 20

Alps - Pyrenees LAPEYROUSE (Philippe Isidore PICOT de LAPEIROUSE ou) Natural history of the ptarmigan. (Extract from) Toulouse, Desclassan ; Manavit ; Paris, Cellot, 1782. In-4, paginated 110-128 (title page preserved and table at beginning of volume). ½ modern blond calf with corners, long gilt title on spine. The rock ptarmigan is the small game par excellence of the mountain environment. Its austere habitat, the difficulty of accessing it and its low abundance considerably limit the ardor of hunters. Only a handful of enthusiasts are particularly keen to hunt it. The rock ptarmigan benefits from various adaptations to snow and cold. One of the most striking is the change in color between summer and winter. As winter approaches, the bird dons a thicker plumage to protect itself from the cold, and a completely white one to go unnoticed on the snow that covers its home range. Extract from Volume I of "Histoire et Mémoires de l'Académie Royale des Sciences de Toulouse" (1782).