LITMIR.BIZ

      Here the larger track of the adult female Cougar on the left is easily differentiated from her five- or six-month-old kitten on the right. Through association, determining the sex of the adult is made easy, and with practice (and ample opportunity to see the animals responsible for making the tracks), determining the relative age of the younger animal from the size of its footprint is possible.

       Track Patterns

      Competent trackers complete two tasks in interpreting a series of animal tracks. First, they analyze the pattern of tracks on the ground so as to visualize how the animal was moving. Second, they interpret the behavior—the meaning in what they are seeing. The first task is more systematic and scientific, while the second is more speculative, relying more upon imagination. Let's take each in turn.

      Gaits and Track Patterns

      A gait describes the way in which an animal is moving; it is not a description of a specific track pattern. There will be numerous track patterns for each gait, depending upon the speed and behavior of the animal, as well as the anatomy and morphology of the species.

      We must also be aware of the complications introduced by language differences. Trackers around the globe use different words to describe the same thing. Some people prefer words that describe track patterns on the ground, while others prefer terminology that describes the way an animal was moving (the gait). This book presents the vocabulary most widely accepted by trackers across the globe, and that which was used by Eadweard Muybridge (1957) in his pictorial presentation of Animals in Motion. This vocabulary provides you with visual information about how an animal is moving—which is crucial in envisioning and becoming that animal in advanced levels of tracking (Liebenberg 1990). But understand that no terminology is better than another. What's important when communicating with others about gaits and trails is that you are all envisioning the same motions.

      Here we separate gaits into three categories:

      1. Walks and trots in which the front feet fall at consistent, rhythmic distances from each other (created by keeping the spine straight and allowing the momentum to be driven by motion in the legs);

      2. Lopes, gallops, hops, and bounds in which the front feet land in alternating short and long distances from each other (created by stretching and contracting the spine, in addition to moving the legs); and

      3. Bipedal gaits in which animals move on only their hind legs.

      Walks and Trots

       Walking

      Walking is a slow gait in which each foot moves independently, and at no point during a cycle of footfalls does the animal lose contact with the ground. We will arbitrarily begin with the right hind foot in our example. The right hind leg moves forward, and just before touching down, the right front lifts up and moves forward. For a moment, two feet are off the ground, and then the right hind touches down. The right front continues forward and then touches down. The left hind moves forward, and just before it touches down, the left front picks up and moves forward. For a second time in the cycle of footfalls there are only two feet in contact with the ground, and then the left hind touches down. The left front continues forward and then touches down. Immediately the cycle begins again, and the right hind picks up and moves forward. Rhythmically, this would sound like “1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2….,” where each number is an independent footfall. Note that the rhythm is continuous—that is, without breaks or pauses.