I was reminded of this when looking at the latest issue of Wild Ohio magazine, a bi-monthly magazine created by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. It has a great section on identifying mammal tracks. As a kid and wannabe Jack London character, creeping through the brush and thorns, following Cottontail tracks in and out of briar patches without getting pricked was about as close as it got to the Yukon.
Later, tracks offered good clues on where to set traps for muskrats and if there was a chance for a mink. They can tell you what had been in the trash, and if the deer that had passed by was a young doe or a heavier buck. You can learn a lot about an animal’s habits and preferences by following them. But one word to the wise: if you want to actually see the animal responsible for the tracks, you can’t just stare at the ground. You have to look up.
To paraphrase hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, who said, “skate to where the puck is going, not where it is,” use the tracks to determine where the animal is going. Deer and rabbits are both known for watching their backtrail, so they’ll be looking for you, too. Seeing them before they see you is the trick. Look for slight elevation changes where a deer might bed down to watch their trail and along edges of cover before you approach.
Watch the gait
According to the guide in Wild Ohio, “Identifying Mammals Using Tracks,” Ohio mammals typically fall into four different gait patterns.
Hopping - This pattern will show the footprints of the rear paws passing ahead of the front paws. Rabbits and squirrels will both create this pattern.
Waddling - Tracks made in this way will show a distinctively alternating left and right partner, as the front and back legs of one side step together. Raccoons, woodchucks, skunks and beavers all move in this manner.
Perfect Stepping - If the prints from the rear leg land in the same or nearly the same spot as the front in zig-zag pattern, it’s called perfect-stepping. Deer, dogs, coyotes, foxes and bobcats all perfect-step.
Bounding - Similar to hopping, but instead of the back paws passing the front, they land in the same spot. Otters and mink both have a bounding gait.
With those details noted, it’s a matter of smaller details to identify the species.
- If the hopping pattern also shows definitive claws, it’s likely a tree squirrel; no claws — a rabbit.
- If the waddling pattern shows a front paw with a human-like thumb, it’s probably a raccoon. If the rear paw is bigger than four inches and there is a mark left by a dragging tail, it’s likely a beaver. Two different funky-looking hands, and a Virginia Opossum is the creator.
- If there is a perfect-step track made by paws with claw marks, it’s a canine of some kind — dog, coyote or fox. The size will determine if it is a fox and coyote. If the track carries in a straight line, more likely coyote than a dog. An average size labrador retriever will have a larger track than a coyote.
- If perfect-step patterns don’t include toenail marks, it could be a cat with retractable claws, a bobcat or a housecat, depending on size. And if they’re made by hooves in the wild in Ohio, it’s a Whitetail deer. That’s the only hoofed animal left in Ohio.
Don’t delay
If you want to see the direction and get a clear idea of the time of travel, go as soon as possible after the snow. Rabbits for example, will be on the move. In a short amount of time it will look like hundreds have been through the area and it will be hard to tell where any of them lead. The same can be said for deer in certain situations and areas.
Devin Meister is a local outdoors and wildlife enthusiast and has a blog called “Average Guy Outdoors.” He is an Ohio University graduate. Reach him at meister.devin@gmail.com.
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