Crazy looking bird

This would be the Ruff (Philomachus pugnax).  Now there's a name - pugnax is latin for pugnacious, combative, fond of fighting, aggressive.

  

I found this bird on my free day before the trip.  After taking this somewhat distant photo, the Ruff took off running - yes, running!  It certainly appeared pugnacious while running.  

I took the also distant photo of the shorebird above, thinking it might be a Reeve (female Ruff) and that it was the object of the male Ruff's pursuit.  Now that I look at the photo, this bird appears to have long, dark legs.  The Reeve has long, yellow legs.  It could be the bright sun making the bird's legs appear darker, or it could also be a Wood, Green or Marsh sandpiper - all of which we saw here and which also have long and yellow, yellowish or light-colored legs.  I include it here as a just-in-case.  Both the top and the second photos were taken very closely together.

Above and two below:  These photos were taken at a roadside stop where another (presumably) photography birding group with gigantic lenses, tripods - the works - had encroached very closely on two or three male Ruffs, probably on their lek.  Eventually the Ruffs ran off and the photographers were called back to their van.  We were left on our own to take our photos.  I did not encroach too closely.  

The Ruff doesn't look pugnacious while standing around and displaying.

Above and three photos below - Ruffs on lek.

On our last, long drive back to Ivalo day, we stopped at a very nice park in Vadsø and saw many birds including, amongst others, another Red-throated Pipit, Arctic Skua chasing birds, Red-necked Phalaropes and these Ruffs.  

I think all four photos are of birds on their lek.  I could write more about this, but won't.  To do so would feel and read like quibbling about inequities that are possible and even likely on any birding trip. 

 

I was surprised to find this along one of the paths.  If this had been found in the states it would have been picked up and carried off by someone.  By now, maybe someone has decided to do that in Norway, too.   Both Anttu and Nigel suggested that it was a moose skull.  I thought that it could also be reindeer skull.  

Later in the day, arriving closer in Ivalo, we stopped at a somewhat untidy area to look for a moose.  We found fresh moose droppings (I'm surprised I didn't take a picture) - but no moose.

It was also on this day, quite close to arriving back in Ivalo, that we stopped along the road and called out - for those lucky enough to see it - a Hazel Grouse (Tetrastes bonsasia).  It fly across the road, kind of like how we had seen the male Capercaillie fly across the road.  It reminded me of how our Ruffed Grouse (different genus: Bonasa) looks when flushed.   Same body formation and dark band along the terminal edge of the tail. This was in the same location we had looked for it three days earlier and where we scared off the Smews who were in good light and close.