PURPOSE:  To interpret the behavior of animals from tracks in snow.

MATERIALS (per student):  Suitable winter clothing, two index cards, numbered stake, meter stick, pencil, small data sheet, rubber cement or tape, Key to Tracks and field guide(s); whistle or other noisemaker for teacher. Optional: photographic equipment.

INTRODUCTION:  During the summer, signs of mammal activity are difficult to locate.  A forest may be the home of squirrels, mice, and oppossum, but a quick look would reveal no signs of their presence.  In contrast, signs of animal activity are easy to see after it snows.

Tracks in the snow can be "read" by careful observation.  They reveal not only what animals use the habitat, but also much about the ecology and behavior of animals that are active in winter.

In this activity, you will learn some techniques of tracking by "reading" the marks of another student moving through the snow.  Then you will apply your knowledge by identifying an animal and describing its behavior from tracks in the snow.

PROCEDURE FOR TRACKING HUMANS:

A. Write your name on a blank index card.  Consider the following activities that many animals do as they move in the snow:

Walking

Running

Bounding (hopping with both feet together)

Stopping near plants to eat seeds or twigs

Laying down to rest

Digging under the snow to find food like grass or moss

B.  Plan a series of five of these activities -- starting and ending with normal walking -- that you can do in 5-10 min outdoors in the snow.  Write your track plan on a blank index card.  Examples:  Walk, bound, lay down to rest, run, walk; Walk, stop near plants to collect twigs, run, dig under the snow, walk.

C.  Glue or tape a small data sheet on another index card.  You will record your observations of another student's trail on this card.

D. Get a numbered stake and go outdoors to an area of undisturbed snow.  Write your stake number on your track plan card.  Make a trail according to your track plan which starts and ends at your stake.  Try not to cross the paths made by other students.

E. When you are done, record any changes you had to make in your track plan on your index card.  Give your track plan card to your teacher for safe keeping.

F.  Get a meter stick and go to the beginning of a trail you did NOT make.  Write the stake numbers of this trail on your data card. Try to "read" this human trail as you walk beside it. Make and record careful observations and measurements on your data card as you go.

G. Your teacher will give you the track plan card of the student you followed to compare to your data card.

PROCEDURE FOR TRACKING ANIMALS:

H.  Find the trail of at least one animal in the snow near your home.  Identify the animal using the Key to Tracks or other field guides. 

I. You may track a domestic animal like a dog or cat, or a wild animal like a squirrel, rabbit or deer. You may wish to photograph the tracks. For each trail, record the following information on an index card:

Date, Time

Animal Species

Sketch of Track Pattern

Straddle Width

Stride Length

Sketch of Footprint

Foot Length

Foot Width

Footprint Depth

Estimate the Age of Trail

Describe Animal's Habitat

Describe Sequence of Animal's Behavior

CONCLUSIONS:

1. How do your field notes on the human trail you followed compare to the track plan of the student who made the tracks?

2. Is it harder to track a human or an animal?  Use examples from your data on both to support your opinion.

DISCUSSION:

3. Describe how the animal(s) you tracked survives in winter.  How does it find food?  What shelter is used by the animal?  If you tracked a domestic animal, how would the animal survive without being sheltered or fed by humans?

4. What characteristics of snow or weather make it hard to "read" tracks in winter?

5. How could you use animal tracks in snow to compare population size in two habitats?