Resource: Finding Animal Tracks

Searching for animals in wild places can be very exciting. A walk through a forest might reveal chattering squirrels, slithering snakes, singing birds, or deer bounding away in great leaps. Visits to such places remind us that there is a fascinating world outside. Forests, meadows, and other wild places are filled with life and activity, but many animals are stealthy or active only at night. Even if we make frequent visits to a natural habitat, we may see only a portion of the wildlife that lives there. If only there were a record of all the animal activities we don't see when we pass through a forest or meadow, we would understand how truly alive these natural places are.

Animal tracks provide such a record. They document not only the presence of animals, but they can tell us a lot about how various animals move and how they spend their time when we're not looking. For example, biologists sometimes confirm the presence of extremely rare and elusive animals, such as jaguars or snow leopards, on the basis of their tracks alone. Tracks can also provide a window into the activities of many nocturnal animals. For example, although few people have ever seen a raccoon fishing for crayfish, the tracks they leave behind on the muddy banks of countless streams and ponds reveal their habits.

Mud and snow provide the best, but not the only, surfaces for preserving an animal's comings and goings. Dusty paths and sand can also reveal intact footprints or the impressions of snake abdomens and lizard tails. To an experienced animal tracker, a bent blade of grass or a slight impression on an otherwise undisturbed expanse of vegetation can give away not only the type of animal that left the track, but also how long ago the animal passed through.

Accurate interpretations of animal tracks are based on an understanding of how animals are built and how they move. In addition to looking at the shape of a particular impression, it is also important to note where the impression of one foot is made relative to other impressions. For example, some animals, such as coyotes and bobcats, leave tracks that appear to be almost in a straight line. These animals are referred to as "perfect steppers" because they place their hind feet almost exactly in the tracks made by their front feet. Other animals, such as rabbits and squirrels, are called "gallopers" because they place their larger hind legs in front of their front legs when they run. By considering these and other patterns, we can begin to see not only what type of animal left the track, but also what it was doing when it passed by.

To learn more about animals and how and why they move the way they do, check out Animals on the Go, Animals Making a Living, and What Do Animals Eat?.

• Do all animals leave tracks in the snow?
• Do animals leave tracks when there's no snow? If there's no snow, where else might you look for animal tracks?
• How can you tell the direction in which a cat or dog was moving based on its tracks?
• Why is it hard for a person to walk like a cat or bound like a squirrel?
• Can you think of other ways to tell an animal was present in nature even though you can't see the animal?