Test Your Tracking Skills #5
Who Made These Tracks?
They are 4-6 cm wide. Who made these tracks Badger, Pine Marten, Dog or Mink?
Badgers belong to the mustelid family which includes otters, weasels, mink and stoats. All mustelids have five toes on both their hind and fore feet.
This is a badger’s left fore foot. The thumb, or toe 1, on the right of the track is placed lower than the other four toes. Compare it with your own left hand.
Toes 2-5 are almost in a straight line.
The toe pads are large and the palm pad enormous. There is very little space between the toes and palm.
In the photo you can see the long claw marks. Claws are a badger’s digging tool.
The claws on the smaller hind feet are shorter.
The badger’s normal gait is a walk when they place the hind foot just behind and overlapping the front track.
This is part of the Becoming A Winter Nature Detective information.