/ Animal tracks. Field guide

This manual allows you to determine from photographs and drawings winter time traces of the most commonly found animals on the peninsula. In addition, there are photographs of traces of birds of the grouse family - partridge and wood grouse. Intended for a wide range of nature lovers, employees natural parks and nature reserves, schoolchildren, students

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Kamchatka brown bear

Ursus arctos piscator Pucheran, 1855 (Kamchatka brown bear)

Easily recognizable marks. Depending on the speed of the animal's movement, the pattern of the chain of tracks can be “covered” (the hind paws are imprinted on top of the front ones) if the animal was moving slowly, or “covered” (the hind paws are imprinted in front of the front ones) when moving quickly.

In the photo there is a bear's footprint in the sand, on the right in deep snow.

East Siberian lynx

Lynx lynx wrangeli Ognev, 1928 (East Siberian lynx)

The mark of the front paw is rounded, up to 9–12 cm in length and width, the hind paw is slightly narrower. Unlike a fox or a wolf, the trail chain is located in a broken line. On dense snow, the hind paw is placed exactly in the footprint of the front paw. The length of the step at a quiet pace is 20–30 cm. There are no claw marks, because they are retractable. When galloping, the tracks of the four legs move closer together. The photo shows the back paw of a lynx.

polar Wolf

Canis lupus albus Kerr, 1792 (Polar wolf)

A wolf's track looks similar to a dog's. The main difference is that his two middle fingers are pushed forward so that the back edge of their prints is level with leading edge extreme fingerprints. The tracks of the hind paws are smaller and narrower than the front paws. During a calm walk, the trail chain forms a straight line, with the hind paws exactly falling into the footprint of the front paws. This is also typical when a flock moves, so the number of animals can only be determined at turns or near some object that interests the flock. The photo shows prints of the front (above) and hind paws on dense snow.

Anadyr fox

Vulpes vulpes beringiana (Middendorf, 1875) (Anadyr red fox)

The footprint of a fox is similar to that of a small dog, but narrower and more graceful. Like the wolf, the prints of the middle fingers are strongly pushed forward. The trail chain with a calm step is straight, the prints of the hind paws are superimposed on the front ones (covered trail). The stride length is up to 30 cm. With a shallow trot, the print of the hind paw partially overlaps the front one; with a wider trot, the prints are located separately, but not far from each other. On page 6 - a photo of fox tracks in deep snow and sand while moving at a calm pace. On page 7 - a drawing of the footprint of the front (left) and hind paws.

Kamchatka sable

Martes zibellina camtschadalica (Birula, 1919) (Kamchatka sable)

Due to the strong hairiness of the sable's paws below, its traces are usually indistinct and blurred. Typically, a track on loose snow consists of a chain of paired tracks, the so-called two-beam (page 8, photo on the left). In shallow snow, the animal moves in a three- or four-step pattern (page 8, photo on the right). When running fast through deep, loose snow, the tracks merge into a chain of elongated holes. The footprint is 7–10 cm long and 5–6 cm wide. Below is a photo of a sable track on dense snow (four-bead).

Kamchatka wolverine

Gulo gulo albus (Kerr, 1792) (Kamchatka wolverine)

The footprint is large and can be confused with that of a lynx or a young bear cub, from which it differs in the clear prints of five fingers and claws. Wolverine has very large feet, which allows her to move through deep snow without falling through. The trail is usually straight. Like most mustelids, it prefers to move in a two-, three- or four-legged manner (p. 10). The footprint size is up to 18 cm in length and up to 13 cm in width.

Northern river otter

Lutra lutra lutra Linnaeus, 1758 (Northern river otter)

When an otter moves through the snow, it remains characteristic of the leaders water image the life of mustelids is a furrow, on the bottom of which covered tracks are imprinted. Sometimes there is a stripe drawn by the heavy tail of the animal. The trail is zigzag. On ice and sand, the otter uses a four-bead pattern. The size of the front paw print is 4–5 cm in length and width, the back one is 4–8 cm in length and 4–6 cm (occasionally up to 13 cm) in width.

On page 12, on the left is a photo of an otter track in deep snow, on the right is a trail of two tracks.

Northern sea otter

Enhydra lutris lutris (Linnaeus, 1758) (Northern sea otter)

As a rule, the sea otter spends most of its time in the water, and if it goes ashore, it prefers rocky shores. However, there are times when in winter powerful ice they simply drive animals into rivers, and then their traces can be found not only on the surf strip, but also in nearby plantings. The track of a sea otter is very similar to that of an otter (the same furrow, double-beaded), but differs in much larger sizes. The trail of tracks is zigzag. A characteristic feature are the prints of the hind flipper-like paws (in the picture below).

American mink

Mustela vison Schreber, 1777 (American mink)

The trail chain of a burrow on loose snow is characterized by the usual two-bead pattern for mustelids. On sand or crust, three- or four-beam. In deep snow, “broaches” from the hind legs often remain, which is why the chain of tracks looks like a continuous groove 8–10 cm wide. The length of the track is approximately 3 cm, a hasty step is 14–15 cm, and a jump is from 25 to 40 cm.

East Siberian stoat

Mustela erminea kaneii (Baird, 1857) (East Siberian ermine)

The tracks of an ermine are a smaller copy of the tracks of a sable, oblong, 1.5–2 cm wide. When moving, it uses a two-bead pattern (p. 18, right), the length of the jump during a leisurely search move is 30–40 cm. At speed it switches to a three- or four-bead pattern, in this case, the jump reaches 41–46 cm (page 18, left).

Siberian weasel

Mustela nivalis pygmaea J. Allen, 1903 (Siberian least weasel)

The weasel has the smallest footprints of all representatives of the mustelids and the smallest jump length - up to 25 cm (unlike the ermine, the weasel is short-legged). Due to its low weight, the weasel almost does not fall through even on loose snow. The footprint is 1.5 cm long, 1–1.2 cm wide. When moving, he most often uses a two-bead pattern, but at speed he switches to a four-bead pattern. The track of a large weasel is similar to that of an ermine. They can be distinguished by the nature of the trail chain: the weasel moves in short, wave-like zigzags, while the ermine makes its characteristic turns at right angles.

Yakut squirrel

Sciurus vulgaris jacutensis Ognev, 1929 (Yakutian red squirrel)

The squirrel mainly moves through the snow by jumping. The tracks are arranged in pairs, with the rear ones being more long paws imprinted in front of the short anterior ones. The pattern of a group of footprints resembles a trapezoid. The size of the front paw print is 4x2 cm, the back one is 6x3.5 cm. The length of the group of prints is 12 cm.

Gizhiga hare

Lepus timidus gichiganus J. Allen, 1903 (Gizhiga blue hare)

The most easily distinguishable print is a pair of larger hind paw prints in front and two smaller front paw prints behind each other. The average size of the print of the front paw is 8.5x5 cm, the back - 12x8 cm. The length of the jump is 120–170 cm, however, when the animal escapes from pursuit or when frightened, it can reach 220 cm. On page 22 at the top right - the hare's dams, below - hole. On the left is the trace of a hind pair of feet on dense snow.

Moose buturlina

Alces americana buturlini Chernyavsky et Zheleznov, 1982 (Buturlin’s moos)

The most large mammal from ungulates of Kamchatka. When moving through deep snow, it leaves behind a wide “trench”. The footprint of an adult bull is on average 15.8 x 12 cm, the hooves are narrow, pointed, and capable of spreading widely when walking on soft ground. Side toe prints are clearly visible even on hard soil. The stride length ranges from 72–75 cm (easy walk) to 70–78 cm (trot) and 187 cm (gallop). The litter is brown, large, round in males and elongated, acorn-shaped in females.

Kamchatka reindeer

Rangifer tarandus phylarchus Hollister, 1912 (Kamchatka reindeer)

It differs from elk tracks in deep snow in that the “trench” is smaller. As a rule, deer prefer open swamps, tundras, wastelands, food hooves from under the snow, keep in herds or in large groups, while the elk goes into thickets, small forests, floodplains, eats branches, bark, and always stays in small groups or alone. The prints of large deer hooves have a characteristic kidney-shaped shape, are strongly rounded, and the prints of low-lying and widely spaced lateral toes are visible from behind. The length of the step at a slow pace is 50–82 cm. The droppings are small dark “nuts”, pointed on one side.

Kamchatka bighorn sheep

Ovis nivicola nivicola Eschscholtz, 1829 (Kamchatka snow sheep)

Footprints bighorn sheep can be found mainly in mountainous areas (the lower limit of its habitat ranges from 1000 to 1200 m) and on coastal terraces. In coastal areas (Kronotsky Peninsula, Cape Shipunsky, Cape Nalycheva, etc.), animals often descend onto the surf strip. The male's footprint is up to 6–9 cm in length, the step is up to 35–40 cm. The footprint consists of hoof prints; prints of the hind hooves are usually absent.

voles

Clethrionomys (Vole)

Moving in jumps, they leave holes in the snow, at the bottom of which there are traces of paws, and at the back there is a line from the tail (photo below). When running, the track consists of two continuous rows of prints, reminiscent of a miniature weasel track (photo above).

Kamchatka stone grouse

Tetrao parvirostris kamtschaticus Kittlitz, 1858 (Kamchatka black-billed capercaillie)

The capercaillie, like the partridge, has a chicken type of tracks. The length of the paw prints is 10–11 cm, in the capercaillie - up to 8 cm. The lateral front toes are slightly shorter than the middle one. The back toe leaves an impression up to 3 cm long from the heel. The trail is a straight line. It feeds on buds and twigs of birch trees, berries, and pine needles, so they are more often found in forest plantations.

Partridges

Lagopus (Ptarmigan)

Traces of partridges can be found in thickets of willow, alder, and along floodplains, where they feed on buds. The prints of the lateral front fingers relative to each other are located almost at a right angle (chicken type of prints). The step is short, 9–12 cm. The size of the footprint is 4.5x5–6 cm. On loose, deep snow, the trail looks like an openwork chain. At the top right is a partridge's roosting area, at the bottom are two trail chains on dense snow. Take-off trail (prints of the bird's wings are clearly visible).

Literature:

1. Gudkov V.M. Traces of animals and birds. Encyclopedic reference guide. M., Veche, 2008
2. Doleish K. Traces of animals and birds. M., Agropromizdat, 1987
3. Catalog of vertebrates of Kamchatka and adjacent marine areas. Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, 2000
4. Lasukov R. Animals and their traces. M., Forest Country, 2009
5. Oshmarin P.G., Pikunov D.G. Traces in nature. M., Nauka, 1990
6. Pikunov D.G., Mikull D.G. etc. Traces of wild animals Far East. Vladivostok, Dalnauka, 2004
7. Formozov A.N. Pathfinder's Companion. M., Moscow University, 1989
8. Ian Sheldon, Tamara Hartson. Animal Tracks of Alaska. Lone Pine, 1999

What can a footprint in the snow tell? An experienced tracker can not only find out which animal left a particular trace. From the trail you can calculate the sex of the animal, its age, and sometimes physical state.

We won't pretend to learn to follow the trail of giving full description animal. Let's just learn to guess the animals by their tracks.

Whose tracks are these?

Hedgehog and mole type of tracks

a, b - ordinary hedgehog, c - long-eared hedgehog, d, e, f - water rat, f - mole vole, h - gray hamster, and, k - mole.

Type of tracks of shrews and mice

a, b, c - small shrew, d, e - shrew, f - bank vole, g - wood mouse.

a, b - harvest mouse, c, d - gray vole, e, f - common shrew, g - piebald shrew.

Dog type tracks

a, b - dog, c, d - wolf, d, f, g, i - fox, h - karagan fox, k, l, m, n - fox, o - Turkmen corsac, p, p - raccoon dog.

Bear type of tracks

a-f - brown bear, h, i - himalayan bear, k, l, m - badger, o - porcupine.

Kuni type of tracks

a, b, d, f - weasel, c, d - ermine, g-o - different types marten

a-g, h - marten, d, f, g, i - kharza, k, l, m, n - sable.

a, b, f, g, h - polecats, c, i, j - different types of minks, d, e, l, m, n - forest polecat.

a - dressing, b, c - otter.

Wolverine type of tracks

a - wolverine, b - striped raccoon, c - kulan, d - thin-toed ground squirrel.

Cat type of tracks

a, b - domestic cat, c, d - Caucasian forest cat, d, e - leopard, g, h - European wild cat, i, k - reed cat (house), l, n - snow leopard, m - lynx.

Deer track type

a, e - camel, b - wapiti, c, d, g, h, i, j - different tracks of a red deer, d - red deer.

a, b, h, i, k - fallow deer, c, d, l, m - roe deer, d, f, g, n, o, p - elk.

a, h - reindeer, b, i - musk deer, c - goat, g - sheep, d, e, m, n - chamois, g - goral, k, l - saiga, o, t - gazelle, p - wild boar, r, s - wild pig.

Hare type of tracks

a - brown hare, b - white hare, c - tolai hare, d - Manchurian hare, e, f - Daurian pika, g, h - midday gerbil, i - squirrel, j, l - flying squirrel, m - great gerbil, n - Amur long-tailed ground squirrel.

Muskrat type of tracks

a, e, f - muskrat, b, c - muskrat, d - beaver, g, h - nutria.

Of course, most of these tracks will not be found in the forests near large cities. Only avid hunters know these tracks and their owners. But you can’t have too much knowledge, right?

Photo: http://zoomet.ru, uralhunter.com

Only in winter do you realize how many different kinds of animals actually live in our forests. In the summer they hide in the bushes, watching us from hiding. And in winter they will leave their mark - so we spotted them.

How to distinguish a wolf's footprint from a dog's?

In the photo on the left is a dog's footprint, on the right is a wolf's footprint:

The tracks of a wolf and a dog are very similar. But pay attention to the location of the outer fingers - the index and little fingers. In a wolf they are closer to the “heel” than in a dog. In a dog track, the prints of the lateral toes end almost in the middle of the prints of the middle ones, while in a wolf, the ends of the lateral toes barely reach the beginning of the middle ones.

They also write that “the wolf holds its paw in a fist,” so the wolf’s footprint is smaller and more prominent than the footprint of a dog of the same size, but it is difficult for a non-specialist to focus on this sign.

Fox

Foxes are relatives of dogs and wolves. The fox track, although similar to the dog track, is much smaller. The fox trail is stretched out in a neat chain - this is its main distinctive feature. Like this:

A winter meeting with the fox itself is not uncommon.

From the life of hares

We also have hares. Gardeners have no doubt about this. It is known that the hare feeds not only her own, but also other people’s bunnies. True, such public feeding is observed mainly in white hares, but is rare in brown hares. Contrary to popular belief, the hare does not abandon her children. It's just that the milk of hares is so nutritious that the hares can feed only once a day or even less often.

The hare, as you know, does not know how to run, it only jumps, and therefore leaves a characteristic mark. The prints of the front, small, paws of the hare are located behind rear, large. Like this:

Mouse

Mice do not hibernate in winter. They also have to get out into the snow to get food. This is the double chain of small traces they leave:

Bear

Do bears live in the Moscow region? We met friends on the border with the Tver region, though not in winter, but in summer. But I saw bear tracks in the snow. In the mountains Central Asia, in Uzbekistan.

10/27/2009 | Pathfinder: Reading animal tracks

Animal tracks, i.e. the imprints they leave on snow or mud, as well as on grass, especially during dew, have great importance for hunting: using the tracks of animals, they are found (tracked) and laid down, their number, gender, age are recognized, as well as whether the animal is wounded and even how badly it is wounded.

Wild animals lead a secretive lifestyle. Thanks to their well-developed sense of smell, hearing and vision, animals and birds notice a person before he notices them, and if they do not immediately run away or fly away, they hide, and their behavior becomes atypical. Traces of their vital activity help the observer to unravel the secrets of the animals’ lives. This means not only the imprints of the limbs, but also all the changes that animals make to surrounding nature.

In order to correctly use the discovered tracks, you need to know who they belong to, how long ago they were left by the animal, where the animal was going, as well as its methods of movement. How to learn to recognize animal tracks? To determine the freshness of a trace, it is necessary to tie together the biology of the animal, the weather conditions in this moment and a few hours ago and other information. For example, in the morning a moose track was discovered, not covered with snow that had fallen the day before from the afternoon until the evening. The freshness of the trail is beyond doubt - it is nocturnal.

The freshness of a trace can also be determined by touch. In freezing conditions in dry snow, a fresh footprint does not differ in looseness from the surface of the surrounding snow. After some time, the walls of the trace harden, and the lower the temperature, the more strongly - the trace “hardens”. Any other trace left big beast, becomes harder over time, and the more time passes from the moment the mark is formed, the harder it becomes. Traces of small animals left on the surface of deep snow do not harden. It is important to find out whether the animal has been here since the evening or passed an hour ago. If the trail is old, more than a day, then it is useless to look for the animal that left it, it is already far away, out of reach. If the trail left is fresh, then the animal may be somewhere nearby. To determine the direction of movement of an animal, you need to know the peculiarities of the placement of the limbs of different animals. Taking a closer look at a single track of a large animal left in loose deep snow, you can notice the difference between the walls of the track along the path of the animal.

On one side they are flatter, on the other they are steeper. These differences arise because the animals lower their limbs (legs, paws) gently, and take them out of the snow almost vertically upward. These differences are called: dragging - the rear wall and dragging - the front wall of the trace. The trail is always longer than the drag, which means that the animal moved in the direction where the short, that is, steeper walls of the track are directed. When the animal removes its leg, it presses on the front wall, compacting it, while the back wall does not deform. Sometimes, in order to accurately determine the direction of movement of the animal, it is necessary to hurry it up, observing the handwriting of the trail.

The gait of an animal, or the gait of its movement, comes down to two types: slow or moderate fast movement(walk, trot, amble) and fast running with successive jumps (gallop, quarry).

Animals with an elongated body and short limbs most often move at a moderate gallop. They are simultaneously pushed off by the hind limbs and fall exactly into the prints of the forelimbs. The legacy with such a gait is paired prints of only the hind limbs (most mustelids).

Sometimes, during a slow gallop, one or both hind legs of the animal does not reach the prints of the front ones, and then groups of tracks of three and four prints, called three- and four-legged, appear. Less often, long-bodied and short-legged animals move to the quarry, and then when jumping they put their hind paws in front of their front paws, and therefore the prints of their hind paws are in front of their front paws (hares, squirrels).

To determine the freshness of a trace, you need to divide the trace with a thin twig. If the trail is easily divided, then it is fresh; if it is not divided, it is old, more than a day old.

Boar tracks on the ground

Boar tracks in the snow

Wolf footprint on the ground

Wolf footprint in the snow

Lynx tracks

Fox tracks

Bear tracks

Deer tracks

When moving at a walk or trot, animals rearrange their limbs in a cross shape: the front right and rear left paws are brought forward, then the other pair. When walking slowly, the front limb of the animal touches the ground slightly earlier than the hind limb, and when moving at a trot, the front and hind limbs of opposite sides fall to the ground at the same time.

With a slow step, the prints of the hind paw remain somewhat behind and to the side of the print of the front paw. During the middle step, the animal places its hind leg in the imprint of its front leg. In a large trot, the print of the hind leg may be located slightly in front of the front line. Consequently, from the pattern of the prints one can judge whether the animal moved slowly or quickly. Ambling is a movement in which an animal simultaneously moves both right or both left limbs (sometimes horses, bears).

Clear footprints are only found on dense wet snow, silt and soft clay. On loose soil or loose snow, animal tracks form a series of shapeless holes without claws or fingers.

An animal's track looks different not only due to the animals' gaits, but also due to the condition of the soil on which the animals move. The footprint also changes depending on the hardness or softness of the soil. Ungulates, when moving calmly on hard soil, leave imprints of two hooves. These same animals, when running and jumping on soft ground, leave prints of four hooves. Having five toes on their front paws, the otter and beaver leave a four-toed footprint on soft ground. The tracks also change as the animals age. In older animals, the tracks are larger and of a different shape. Piglets rest on two fingers, and their parents on four.

Adult dogs rest on four toes, while puppies use five. The footprints of males and females are also different, but only experienced trackers can discern the differences. As the seasons change, the tracks of animals change, as the paws of some of them become overgrown with rough long hair, which makes it easier to move on loose snow (marten, lynx, white hare, fox, etc.).

Badger trail	Coot trail
Snipe trail	Moose trail
Squirrel trail	Bear trail
Beaver trail	Mink footprint
Lapwing trail	Deer trail
Raccoon trail	Muskrat trail
Raccoon dog footprint	Quail trail
Wood grouse trail	Lynx trail
Ermine trail	Wolverine trail
Hori trail	Hazel grouse trail
Wapiti trail	Sable trail
Boar trail	Groundhog trail
Musk deer trail	Black grouse trail
Corsac track	Duck trail
Roe deer trail	Woodcock trail
Sandpiper track	Otter trail
Marten track	Wolf trail

The fox is found throughout Russia from the east to the westernmost borders, from the Arctic coast to the south. This red-haired trickster has not settled only on a few islands of the Arctic, on its coastal areas with a harsh climate, as well as on the archipelagos.

No matter what area of ​​the country hunters go hunting, they can meet the common fox and see its tracks everywhere. This article will help, using photos of fox tracks and other animals, to accurately determine who owns the tracks left by the animal in the snow.

Basic Concepts

How wonderful it is to enter the world of fields, steppes and forests, to learn more about life their inhabitants. Watching birds and especially animals is very difficult. There is no harm in this; their lives will be helped by studying the traces they left behind. If you want to become a tracker, you need to work hard, because the main thing in this is not simple matter is experience and practice.

You've probably heard the saying more than once that it's better to see once than to hear a hundred times. Wherever you are, look carefully around you, life is seething everywhere, which is important to be able to see. It’s better to go into the forest on skis or on foot in winter, taking a camera, pencil and notepad with you. By constantly keeping notes and sketches, learn to correctly recognize which animal left a mark in the snow.

The tracks are different, but it’s better to immediately learn to read the paw prints left by animals in the snow. Determining exactly who left their mark is not always easy. For example, in winter, clear paw prints are rarely visible, but the trail can be found without much effort. The situation is quite difficult in determining the freshness of the trace being studied; this process can well be called an entire art. All the secrets of this science are below.

Fox tracks

The fox is a small, well-known predator; it can often be found in places where small rodents are found. Its habitat is fields, river valleys and sparse forests. A hunter for whom a fox is a valuable trophy must first of all be able to identify its trace among the tracks of other predators. Foxes are counted using paw prints.

A hunter especially often tracks a fox on winter days through the snow; for this reason, the main attention should be paid to studying the traces of the intended game. Looking closely at the prints of the red predator on the fine snow, you can notice that the pads of the two middle toes protrude forward, and the prints left by the pads of the two outer toes are behind and cover the front with the tips of the claws from the barrels. To briefly characterize the tracks of the chanterelle, it is worth noting that they represent a type of boat (see photo 1).

Fox tracks have a sign by which a tracker can easily determine which paw (front or back) they were left by. The front legs have a concave crumb, and on the hind legs it is convex. The fox's paw prints are 6.5 by 5 cm. The prints that can be seen on a straight path are located “as if along a thread.” The step length corresponds to 30 sometimes 40 cm.

By carefully examining the tracks of a fox, you can determine its behavior: jumps 3-4 m long, then an instant stop, throws at right angles are often observed in one direction or the other. All this defines the fox as a dexterous, resourceful animal endowed with unique flexibility.

When the fox goes to bed during the rutting period, as well as when moving through areas where there is no food, it moves without looping, thus leaving straight tracks. When a fox travels long distances, it trots. At this time, a doubling of an even chain of tracks of the red cheat occurs; if you look closely, you can see two parallel rows of paw prints. In this case, one mark may slightly capture the edge of another.

To quickly get to the intended place in winter through deep, loose snow, inconvenient for running, the fox does not run, but simply jumps, the prints of four limbs remain at a distance of 1-2 m. While pursuing prey, the fox moves at an extended gallop.

While studying the tracks of a red predator moving through deep snow, you come to the conclusion that they are most often connected by a continuous stripe. Because of this, it is difficult to accurately determine the direction of the animal. But there is a second, rather simple way, using which knowledgeable people It’s quite easy to find out in which direction any forest inhabitants are moving; the fox is also one of them. Experienced hunters and trackers recommend that novice trappers pay attention to blades of grass or twigs sticking out in the snow along the line of tracks. They leave lines by which you can accurately guess in which direction the running animal bent down, which means this will be its planned route.

What paw prints does a dog leave?

Fox tracks in the snow are very similar to the paw prints of a small dog. The hunter must learn to recognize the “handwriting” of foxes and mongrels. The paw prints left by a fox in the snow are much slimmer and neater than dog tracks. If you look at the marks from the pads of the two front and back fingers, it becomes clear that a visual line can be drawn between them. In many dogs, the side toes wrap around the sides of the hind toes, extending forward. In photo 2 you can see the tracks of a dog and a wolf.

Sometimes the tracks of some dogs are difficult to distinguish from fox tracks. But there will be no doubt left if you carefully examine the straight chain of holes and the surprisingly even distances between them, as well as the regular curves on the front of the tracks. No dog can make such a drawing with very delicate lines. The fox has sharp claws, and the dog has worn ones.

Wolf tracks

In the forest you can find many traces of forest animals. One of them is the wolf. Accept wolf tracks in the snow for foxes, impossible. Compared to fox paw prints, the handsome wolf leaves very large dents in the snow. The wolf's track (see photo 3) is more similar to that of a large mongrel.

When a wolf moves at a walk or trot, its right hind leg exactly falls into the mark left by the front left leg, and, accordingly, the left hind leg hits the mark of the right front leg. Therefore, the wolf's tracks, lying in a single line, resemble a string. I would like to note that to observe in winter time The way the wolf moves through the snow is very pleasant. On the background white snow this animal looks extremely beautiful.

Bear tracks in the snow

There is no person who doesn't know brown bear. It weighs 600-700kg. Lives in forests with ravines and swamps. There you can find his traces. They are quite easy to recognize among the many traces of other animals. The prints of its front and hind paws are especially different, both in shape and size. This can be clearly seen in photo 4.

The bear's front paws measure 15 by 15 cm, and the hind paws measure 25 by 14 cm. The bear's claws on the front paws are noticeably longer than on the hind paws, and, on the contrary, the support of the hind paw is greater than the support of the front paw. Depending on how fast the bear moves, the pattern of the chain of tracks changes. When the hind feet make a print on top of the front feet, the pattern is called "covered." If the hind paws make tracks in front of the front paws, indicating that the bear was moving quickly, the track pattern is called "overlapping."

Hare tracks in the snow

There are different animals in the forest, big and small. If you don’t have to see them, then you will definitely come across footprints along the way, especially if you go out into the forest in winter on fresh snow. You can easily find bunny tracks. There is no need to describe this animal. The white hare is known even to small children. Its weight is very small, approximately 3–5 kg. Ears of short length are black at the tips. Whole round ponytail white. In the summer, the hare changes its pure white coat to a reddish-brown one.

The hare leaves traces (see photo 5), which are not difficult to distinguish from other animals, and you can see them quite often. The hare's habitat is birch and aspen forests; often its tracks are also found near rivers and lakes.

The tracks of this animal represent two hind paw prints in front and two smaller fore paw prints behind, located one after the other. On average, the size of the footprint of the front paws is 8.5 by 5 cm, the size of the hind paws is 12 by 8 cm. When a hare runs, frightened by its pursuer, its jump length is more than two meters; in normal condition, it leaves jump marks 120 - 170 cm long. The hare makes jumps that depend on the speed of movement.

Determining the freshness of fox and other animal tracks in the snow

A good hunter is one who is an excellent tracker along the white trail. Hunters gave this name to tracks in the snow. Determining when an animal left a print is a very difficult matter. In this small article it is not possible to reveal all the intricacies of this complex science, but you can familiarize yourself with some principles. They will bring invaluable help in the first stages.

Fresh tracks left in winter by fox, bear, hare, wolf and other forest inhabitants are covered with sparkling snowflakes thrown out of the track hole. Some time passes and the marks begin to fade, harden under the influence of frost, and the edges become less noticeable.

At what speed these processes will take place depends on the location where the trace is found, as well as on weather conditions. If the tracks are in the open, they will be covered faster than those that are in a ravine. It is not difficult to calculate when the footprint was left if the time of the last snowfall is known. For example, a small snowfall fell at 9 o’clock in the morning, and at 11 o’clock they already saw a completely fresh print, it turns out that it was left two hours ago.

Experts in this matter give valuable advice: compare your fresh tracks with those being studied. If a slight difference is visible between them, this indicates that the tracks are fresh. If you are planning a hike in the forest, it is recommended to go out into the yard in the evening and leave your handprint there. In the morning, looking at it, you can already know how to this state weather and snow should look like yesterday's trail.