Winter Tracking with Kids

Animals leave many tracks behind, at all times of the year. However, winter seems to be the time of year where more people are interested in animal tracking. I am sure it is because tracking animals in the snow is one hundred times easier than tracking across dry pine needles in the middle of summer! Developing an understanding of the morphology of an animal's footprint is a practice that takes time. We unfortunately live in a society where you can show a child fast food logos and they will be able to identify more than they would pictures of local wild animal tracks. Being able to correctly identify tracks and signs left behind by animals can give a deeper sense of connection to the landscape and animals that live nearby. Tracking can tell a story of who stopped by the backyard and when. Children are very open to adventure and learning new things. I personally have never met a child who does not like animals either. Tracking is a concrete way to connect and educate them on their favorite creatures. 

First, let's define what tracking is. Finding, identifying, and following footprints, scat, chew marks, hair, rubs, and anything else an animal leaves behind is considered “tracking”. Usually, referring to an animal’s “track” means that you are talking about its footprint while its “sign” is anything else left behind. The word “trailing” refers to the act of following an animal's trail in an attempt to find the animal. 

Bringing your children on an animal tracking adventure is an easy and accessible activity. You don’t need any special gear, and as long as you can identify that what you're looking at is a track, you don’t need any experience to get started! In the 14 years that I have been teaching animal tracking, I have learned that it's best to ask questions that help someone observe certain details rather than just saying “yup, that's a bobcat track”. Here are some questions you can ask your child, and yourself, to learn about animal tracking and gather certain information that will lead to proper identification.

How many toes are on each foot?

Felines and canines register four toes on each foot. Deer usually show two but may show four toes on each foot as well. Weasels, raccoons, otters, bears, opossums, and skunks register 5 toes on each foot. Rodents register 4 toes on each front foot, and 5 toes on each back foot. Knowing the number of toes on each foot is a great place to start when narrowing down the options for figuring out who left the track behind.

How would you describe the walking pattern?

The walking pattern of an animal varies from species and also how fast the animal was moving. This can tell us a lot about what the animal was thinking. Do your best to distinguish each front foot and each hind foot. Get down on all fours and try to imitate how the animal was walking. This will give a significant understanding of how the animal was moving.

What animals could have left this track behind?

Creating an overall list of possible animals can help to narrow down our assumptions to at least a few animals if we ever find ourselves guessing. Other signs we find could help to solidify our answer. 

What is the habitat?

Certain animals like specific environments. Knowing species and what habitat they like to live in will narrow down your guess when looking at an animal's track. If we are near water and we see footprints coming in and out of the water, it would be a good guess that the animal spends at least some of its time in water. Beaver, muskrat, otter, and mink could be the culprit for these tracks!

Which foot is which?

Knowing the front and hind feet can help with identification. Many animals, like raccoons, bears, and opossums, have front and hind feet that look very different from each other. 

What are the shapes of the feet?

Describing the shapes of the outline in each footprint is a great way to remember animals in categories. Is the track oval, circular, or triangular? What other animals have the same shape print?

How old are these footprints?

Aging tracks is potentially one of the most important things to learn. It is the only way to tell if the animal is nearby, or passed by a few days ago. A simple exercise is to wait for a light snowfall on the driveway. When the squirrels and the neighbor’s outdoor cat walk on it, their tracks will show up clearly. It's obvious, but the tracks in the snow were made after snow covered the driveway. This is the easiest to figure out, but now try it with leaves and then try aging in sand!

Ideas for Practicing Tracking

Get out there!

The only way to get good at something is to do it! Get out in the woods, the parks, the fields, and anywhere there are animals! Remember that animals rarely follow human paths and trailing an animal could lead you very far off trail. Always make sure you pay attention to the way back.

Flashcards

Repetitively seeing pictures of tracks will help our brains to pattern in on them while we are out in the woods. Flashcards can also have other information like range maps, latin names, and cool facts about each animal. There are a few tracking playing cards and flashcards for purchase but nothing compares to making them yourself with your child. 

Drawing Tracks and Journaling

Drawing a footprint forces us to look at specific details that we may have otherwise missed. This can also lead into making those flashcards! Keeping a tracking journal will also help your child remember details, weather, locations, and sizes of each track they find on their journey. 

Find Good Tracking Areas

Mud, sand, clay, and snow are generally easier to track animals in compared to leaves, pine needles, and gravel. Muddy spots on trails, sandy river banks, sandpits, and beaches are great locations which will consistently show better details in tracks. 

Plaster Casts

When you find a good quality track, it's sometimes worth it to save the actual track. Some plaster poured into the track and left for a while to dry makes for a cool tracking “trophy” to bring home. Try to collect as many species as you can and make a special area at home for your plaster casts.

Never Step on a Footprint

The number one rule to tracking: DON’T RUIN A TRACK! Once a track has even been touched, it loses its pureness. Someone stepping on top of an animal’s footprint will completely lose what everyone was looking at. Walk next to the trail when pursuing an animal. You never know when you’ll need to return to a footprint for information and clues. 

I hope this article inspired you to take your child outside to look for animal tracks! Remember that animals don’t just leave footprints, but also scat, hair, bones, chew marks, and lots of other forms of sign. Children have a keen sense of awareness and tend to pick up on things that us adults miss. Perhaps the world is still new for them, or perhaps we are caught up in our minds on what we need to do next, or perhaps animal tracking is a natural human norm and children are still in tune and receptive to nature. Whatever the reason may be, there is no age too old to begin to learn this ancient science. Get out there and go make some tracks of your own!

-Tim Swanson, Founder and Lead Instructor of Owl Eyes Wilderness Survival