Which Animals Made These Tracks in the Snow? New York DEC Shows Us

Have you ever walked past fresh snow, noticed a set of tracks, and stopped to wonder who passed through before you? Reading animal tracks can actually be pretty fun, and it does not take a lot of expertise once you know what to look for.

A good place to start is the snow itself. The type of snow makes a big difference in how tracks appear. Wet snow usually gives you nice, clean prints that are easier to see. Dry powdery snow can blur the details, which makes tracks a little tougher to figure out.

Next, think about how the animal was moving. This is called its gait. Most animals use one of four basic ways to get around. Walking is the most common, and it leaves evenly spaced tracks in tidy lines with a shorter stride. Trotting is a bit faster and happens when the opposite front and back feet move together. As the animal picks up speed, the distance between prints grows.

Galloping is faster and takes more energy, leaving longer strides and a tighter pattern. Jumping is what you will see from animals like rabbits and squirrels, where all four feet may leave the ground at the same time.

The shape of the track also tells a story. Cats leave round tracks with four toes and no claw marks. Dogs like foxes and coyotes leave more oval prints, and you can usually see claws. Deer tracks look heart-shaped, while moose tracks are similar but much larger. Smaller animals like rodents and weasels leave trickier patterns, so a simple field guide can be helpful.