The TABloids. Issue 08. December 2, 2024

A Short Guide to Animal Tracks of Wisconsin

By: Isiah Chrouser 

Most of the time, wild animals are very secretive, leaving very little to hint of their existence, let alone being able to identify them. However, in the winter, snow covers the ground, and pawprints are left pristinely after a fresh snowfall. Here’s how the prints can be identified:

First, it is easiest to tell hoofed animals, such as white-tailed deer, apart from other animals. Other animals can be more complicated to identify.

Canines, such as dogs, foxes, and coyotes, all have very similar prints, with foxes and coyotes usually having a thinner paw than domestic dogs. Felines have similar features, with a noticeable lack of claws, as they are retracted when walking. The most common cat would be the house cat, with a print slightly more than an inch, with the rarer cats such as the bobcat having larger prints up to two inches, when considering fully grown adults.

Other common animals include:

Raccoons have a distinct five “finger” paw that resembles a human hand. The back paw will also be grouped with the front paw in the gait if the animal was walking at the time. The back paw on adults will be around four inches, and the front paw around two and a half inches.

Cottontail Rabbits have a long back foot and small front foot, with a noticeable lack of toepads. Their gait will have the back paws grouped together with the front paws slightly separated. The larger back paws are nearly four inches, while the front paws are typically around one inch in adults.

Gray Squirrels are similar to rabbits, with the exception being that they do have toepads, and their back paws are much smaller.

There are many other animal tracks to be found, especially in more natural areas. For a guide to help identify these, check out A Field Guide to Animal Tracks by Olaus  J. Marie from the library.