Mount Rainier's chubby snowbirds declared a threatened species

A chubby bird that lives year-round in some of the Pacific Northwest’s most pristine habitats has been added to the nation’s roster of threatened species.

The Mount Rainier white-tailed ptarmigan makes its home in alpine tundra and high mountain meadows above treeline in Washington and British Columbia.

The ptarmigan’s uncanny camouflage — its mottled brown plumage turns pure white in winter — hides it from predators, and its habitat is mostly congressionally designated wilderness, off-limits to most types of human disturbance.