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(Photo: mlharing/iStock / Getty Images Plus via Getty Images) FoxĪ straight line of prints like the one shown below indicates perfect stepping. In wetter snow, you may be able to distinguish four toes on the back feet. Notice the track gait in this image, where the hare’s large back feet landed in front of its smaller front feet.
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Learn how to recognize them so you can identify them on your next winter hike. The following prints are commonly found across North America. If you can identify a burrow or den that an animal has emerged from or walked toward, you might have a better shot at identifying it. When attempting to identify animal tracks in the snow, look for additional hints like fur, scat, and the starting and stopping points of tracks. Straight line animal tracks in snow indicate a perfect stepper, such as a moose or a fox, has passed through.
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These walkers place their rear foot inside the print of the front foot, forming a series of single tracks. Perfect Steppers: Coyotes, Foxes, Mooseįox and moose prints. Look for front and rear pairs, as shown, to identify an ambler. Black bears, skunks, and porcupines are among the most common amblers. These prints are recognizable by their side-to-side pattern, which shows how the animal waddles through the snow. Bounders’ tracks show where the animal’s back feet landed close to the front feet. These animals have long bodies and short legs-like weasels and mink. Clumps of four prints indicate that a hopper has passed through. Picture a rabbit planting its front paws and swinging its back paws in front as it bounces through the snow. As it hops, an animal’s smaller front feet tend to land first, followed by the larger back feet, which plant ahead of the front feet. Squirrels and snowshoe hares belong to the hoppers. By observing patterns, you can discern the size of the tracks and how an animal moves, which will help you narrow in on an identification. Snow conditions can make it hard to identify individual prints, so understanding track gaits and looking for patterns can be even more useful than memorizing dozens of print shapes. These four categories don’t necessarily cover every animal track you might encounter on the trail, but they’re a great place for beginner trackers to start, says Manitta. Manitta distinguishes between groups of animals he refers to as hoppers, bounders, amblers, and perfect steppers. Animals move in all sorts of unique ways, and these movements leave behind valuable evidence for trackers.
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“The track gait is the full stride of multiple tracks that help you observe how the animal is moving,” says Tom Manitta, outreach coordinator for the Adirondack Mountain Club. Identify Animal Tracks in the Snow by Looking at Walking Patternsĭon’t just look for the shape of prints, but the entire track gait. But don’t wait too long: Warm temperatures and direct sun can melt out animal prints in the snow, warping and degrading them. Wait until after a storm has ceased, when animals will emerge looking for food and leave evidence of their wanderings in the fresh snow. So, during a snowstorm is rarely a good time to hunt for fresh tracks. In addition, animals tend to hunker down during blizzards. Loose, dry snow often won’t hold the details of prints well enough to identify them by shape. Animal tracks hold their shape best in thin, wet layers of snow.
Not all snow conditions are equally suited for animal tracking in deep snow, large animals will sink-just like postholing hikers-rendering their prints difficult to identify. Time it Right A snowshoe hare sits pretty in the snow (Photo: Keith Bradley/Moment via Getty) As you get started, focus more on observation precise identifying is a skill that will come with practice. Keep in mind that not all of the animals you see in summer will be active during the colder months in contrast, you may have a better chance of locating animals that camouflage better in summer. Consulting guidebooks or mobile apps like iTrack Wildlife Lite can help you begin to recognize paw, hoof, and footprints. As a beginner, don’t expect to be able to definitely identify animal tracks on your first try. This will help you narrow in on an identification. Before hitting the trail, read about the animals that frequent the area and what their tracks look like. The types of tracks you can find depends on where you’re hiking, and a little bit of advance research will give you the skills you need to tell them apart from each other. Follow these tips to spot and identify animal tracks in the snow. But snow preserves them, allowing hikers to experience the busyness of the forest in a new way. In summer, animals’ prints can be difficult to spot on packed dirt trails. Winter is an especially great time to go hunting for animal tracks in the snow. Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members!
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