figuring out tracks

[icehole]

Looken for help trying to tell tracks in sugary snow. I have been driving by tracks for two days trying to figure out what they are and how old. Deer and elk are easy but the bobcat and cyote tracks are giving me hell. the snow is sugar and you cant really see a track in it. I look to see if its picken up its feet or wondering back and forth and draggen feet like a cyote. Also any idea on telling how old the track is? I figure I have been driving past most of them.
Sometimes I can find an x in them and I figure thats a cyote. I look for a rounder track but the snow dumps in as soon as the track is made and you cant tell.

[catdogs]

Coyotes - longer stride, shorter straddle, oblong track with claws, often loping, bi lobal pad.

Bobcats - shorter stride, wider straddle, round track, no claws, usually walking, will walk logs often, tri lobal pad, direct register.

Check the heel pad. The bobcat has a "c" shape between the heel and toes, whereas a coyote has an "x" shape. All just clues of course.

If the snow is light enough, you can get down close and blow it out of the tracks.

[al baldwin]

Had a hunting partner that was good at using warm coffee poured into those tracks very careful & he was often able to show very plain if it was a cat or coyote. It sure worked for him! Al

[Mike Leonard]

As you spend more time on the trail and in the woods you will begin to realize that canine predators walk in a drunken manner as they follow the breeze with their noses. they wander too and fro as they detect scent and stop often and circle and sniff or even dig to inspect. Felines on the other hand walk with purpose in direct lines between sight objects.

If you observe this a lot soon you will be able to let your eyes skim over the snow and even sight a cat track walking amid a maze pf coyote sign. It is a part of wilderness education and great fun. If we had to stop to look into or try to break down each single track to discern which animal made it we would never be home by supper.

Now then once you have accomplished this the next step is to move on to bare ground . Yes it may be practical to look into these tracks more but with practice you will be able to discern the general travel behavior quickly and save a lot of lost time messing with off game.

Have fun it's all so much like a detective's mystery.

[BlazeNBrat]

Can't add to much to what has been posted. I will say once you get an eye for cat tracks you can spot them at 30mph. Nothing else walks quite like a cat. Coyotes can look like a cat in deep snow when they slow up and meander. This is easily ruled out by walking on it for a short distance, their stride changes and gets to looking more like a dotted line, where as a bobcat doesn't change. like Catdogs said cats have a wider straddle and when you walk on it, it wont change.

[twist]

As Mike has said there is a difference in the way different animals walk but there is times when one can not tell as with powder snow or sugar snow so if one does not have a trusted dog he will have to fallow the track out until it gets under some type of brush or tree and hope one can tell then. Also one can get down on all fours and blow the track out, this works sometimes. I had a track like this last year that I was not 100% sure on it being a bobcat or yote, resembled a yote way more than a cat in all aspects. Had to have the dogs tell me what it was and a few minutes later had a dandy tom in the tree. These types of tracks are few and far between though but there is times even the wisest cant tell. Andy

[BlazeNBrat]

Also, you asked about determining track age. There's a few ways, I compare the cat track to my own first off, does it look fresh like mine at all? A lot of times in dry sugary snow tracks can look old even though you have just steped there.
Then look a little closer, is there frost crystals in the track? Also, the snow they kick up on top when they walk, it ages, it'll get to looking old or deteriorate if its old.
However, best way to tell for sure is to put your dog on it and see "how she likes it" normally she tells me if its something we can work on.

[icehole]

Following most of what has been said. Picturing in my mind tracks I studied today and am not sure about "straddle". I had a track or two today where the front and back foot were in the same track.
Aging the snow kicked up on the side of the track? Does the snow get more crystalized with age? There was a bit of crust on top the snow. I compared with the track I made and could not see difference.

[LarryBeggs]

Agree with most every thing every one said. But like twist said you cant always be 100% sure. there are exceptions to most of what was said also.I followed about a dozen sets of lion tracks down the road for miles last night and this morning .A couple of them were wandering the road from edge to edge. I think they were trying to flush rabbits from the brush on the edge of the road. But they were still abviuosly lion tracks.Other things that were said showed clearly what they were even in the places where the snow was thin and the track was melted to the ground.Also treed a bobcat today that had his claws out in the first track that I found.They will sometimes stick them out for traction. Still clearly cat tracks from the other things that were said.Dogs had struck hard and not wanting to run one of the many lion tracks I had seen had put a dog on a leash and walked her out in the brush to find were the cat was sitting when the dogs struck it. Cat was getting traction when getting out of there. Also like twist said at some point in time have to know your dogs well enough to tell what they are smelling. Last night we were sitting in the truck trying to dry out and get some sleep after comong out from a tree to a down pour. My son had to leave early for work and had called me on the radio to tell me he thought he had seen a cat in the road. But not 100% sure . No snow so we came up and dumped a couple dogs out . Not a cat.Those same two dogs a couple of years ago I wouldnt have trusted to check a track like that. But even then If I didnt get in a hurry and dump the tail gate the dogs would have given it away if I watched them a bit.Have to know your dogs. Something that only comes with time and learning from your mistakes.But untill you know your dogs well enough it is up to you to be 100% sure what you are turning them in on.Look at the whole picture of the track not just one aspect of it. Good luck, Larry

[icehole]

Thanks for all the good advice. I put my only good dog on an track today. I figured it to be a bobcat by the straight line it walked, but the track looked old to me. The dog had his head in the track and wouldnt give up on it. He never opened on it, but we trailed it for an hour up a dry creek bottom. I thought he did good figuring it out in a mess of deer tracks. I finally called him off even though he didnt want to quit the track.
Later found a track that was lined out and fresh thought for sure I had a bobcat track. Turned out to be a coyote. Problem is I am sure the dog is smarter than I am.

[mondomuttruner]

You can question and doubt yourself on the first few tracks in fresh deeper snow but when you find a bobcat track, there's no question, it's a cat track,period...like was said earlier, when you get to know what your looking for, you can spot them at 30 mph amongst other tracks. Just takes time and experience.
I've seen inexperienced guys wish it to be a cat track so bad, they talk themselves into it. I tell them when they do find a cat track they will laugh at themselves for thinking the other tracks were cat tracks.

[al baldwin]

This has been interesting post. Sure never hunted snow enough to be an authority. Here lots of times may only see a few snowed in tracks where a critter has crossed a brushy road. Lots time brush so thick hard to find a track once critter crosses the road. Of course seen enough tracks to know a cat from coyote if track is visable. And if one is not certain have sure seen the warm coffee sometimes work to make a snowed in track show very plain. No matter how broke a hound was I never wanted anyone encouraging a hound of mine to work a track I was not sure about. Thanks & Merry xmas to all Al

[come-hunt]

The most informative post I've read about tracks. Living in a dry, low humidity, sandy soil country. I have been reading tracks for over sixty years following bird dogs. Being relatively new to the hound world and thinking there wasn't a whole lot I could learn about tracks.I just knew in this sand, it was dang hard to for me to tell a cat track from a coyote. I could see how this would work in snow.
I've found that even in deep sand there is a pronounced X in the coyote track ( I mean I can see it from the pick-up window) it is supposed to snow here this evening I'm anxious to see if it is the same X in the snow. I've yet to find a Cat track to see if this hold true with the C shape.Thanks for teaching an old dog something new. I figured sand would be different, there is a raised up X between the pad and toes.
P.S. I don't recommend trying to blow the sand out of the track to clear it up, kinda makes your pipe stem gritty.

[Unreal_tk]

Come hunt,

That x or c trick doesn't work well in deep snow if your ever around it. I got myself told on today in deep snow. Turned out dogs on a track I thought was a cat, turned out it was a yote. I couldn't find a spot good enough to look clearly but I trust my mutts enough.

My goto thing to do is look at the gait, and then double check under brush/trees. Cats also wont break as deep as a deer in deeper snow.

[icehole]

Looking under brush/trees has been a sure fire way to tell this weekend. I caught a bobcat friday on a track I thought was old. Found a few tracks since I thought were better but the dog disagreed. Ageing the tracks seems to be the hardest right now. Temps are not getting above freezing and we have had the same snow since friday.