Here is where the animal came through the snow.
For those of you interested, here is Darrel's reasoning. (Darrel is an excellent tracker as he has studied with the best).
Here's how I approach track identification.
First, I count the toes.
On the first 2 photos (which I assume are of the same 2 tracks) I count 5 toes.
(Note: Some animals have a different number of toes on the front feet compared to the rear feet.)
Canines and felines have 4 toes on both front and back, as do rabbits, so 5 toes rule out all of these. (Darn.) The tracks also rule out hoofed animals, so that rules out deer, antelope, elk, moose, bison, horse, cow, goat, and sheep. It also rules out all birds.
The 1st photo shows 2 consecutive sets of tracks, and I think I count 5 toes on each. The 5th toe is not as far forward and is held closer to the side of the heel pad, almost like a thumb.
This rules out mice, shrews, voles, squirrels, chipmunks, and woodchucks.
As you can see, much of track identification is a process of elimination. This leaves us with ...
A. Bear (black or grizzly)
B. Beaver
C. Fisher
D. Mink
E. Muskrat
F. Opossum
G. Otter
H. Porcupine
I. Raccoon
J. Skunk
K. Weasel
... all of which have 5 toes both front and back.
The tracks look to be 2" long (give or take 1/2") so that rules out Bears, Beaver, Otter, and muskrat which have larger feet and thus larger tracks. Beaver and otter also have webbed feet, and I don't see any sign of webbed feet.
This leaves us with ...
a. Fisher
b. Mink
c. Opossum
d. Porcupine
e. Raccoon
f. Skunk
g. Weasel
Raccoon prints look like miniature human hands, as do opossum front tracks. Opossum also have a
rear track that has a distinctive thumb-like toe that projects off to the inside and back, and I don't see either of these in the photos.
A porcupine has a very large heel pad, about 3 times longer than what the photoed tracks have, and they have longer toes.
This leaves ...
1. Fisher
2. Mink
3. Skunk
4. Weasel
I'll have to defer any further narrowing of the list based on size. There are subtle differences in track size, but if my guess on size has an error range of + or - 1/2", it would be very hard to eliminate any of these based on size alone.
It would help to know the exact length and width of the tracks, as well as the straddle (inside distance between left and right tracks) as well as the stride (distance between the heel of one foot and the next heel track of the SAME foot).
At this point, it's pretty clear that these tracks were made by a member of the weasel family, which includes all 4 of the above.
My final best guess requires that I look at the exact shape of the heel pad. This eliminates a skunk. I also think it eliminates the fisher.
I can't decide whether its a mink or a weasel. Both have a heel pad like those in the first 2 photos.
4 comments:
Hi! Just wanted to thank you for such a great post. I recently spotted some tracks in the snow that I suspect are a weasel's and will compare them with the info you provided. Thank you :)
Looks good for fisher. Depends on the size. Using a similar pen, I estimate the track is 2 1/2", which makes it fisher. Mink would be just under 2" and weasels even smaller.
Hi,
I stumbled upon your page while looking for some track photos on the internet....these are tracks of a Raccoon....the gate is a BIG clue when it comes to this animal. The Raccoon track is one of the most variable and sometime the back of the pad doesn't register, even on the hind feet. Also, as I'm sure you're aware, the size of Raccoons varies depending on food availability.
Same comment as above. I'm a wildlife biologist and environmental educator and those are raccoon tracks, HOWEVER I LOVE the process you went through to get your answer. Tracking is as much about the process as the actual identification!
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