Click to Enlarge   Signs In The Snow by Martha Daniels illustration by David Besenger Follow the tracks to learn about animals. The landscape is hushed after a great snowfall. It is magic, isn't it? What a perfect time to pull on your coat to see what wild animals come out in the white weather! Coyotes, opossums and many other wild animals are rarely seen, much less followed. They avoid people and predators by coming out at night or by living in heavy cover. New snow on the ground makes it possible to discover exactly where animals den, where they feed and where they travel. You may still not be able to see the animals, although a snowy backdrop makes it easier to see them, but you can follow their tracks and learn all about how they live. The morning after a new snow is the best time to go tracking. Most animals stay in dens or a covered place during storms. That's how they survive the snow and cold. Many animals are nocturnal (or active at night) in winter, so the tracks you see in the morning should be fresh. Watch for tracks where two habitats meet, such as the edge of a field and a woodland. Signs may be tracks, nibbled plants, scat, feathers, digging and other clues. The number of toes in a track will help you narrow down the animal that made the track. The track's size can help you guess if the animal is big or small. Animals make their tracks in different patterns. For example, you can walk, hop or run, while rabbits can walk or hop. If the tracks are in an almost straight line, the animal is walking or trotting, and they were probably made by a cat, dog or deer. If tracks are in pairs or bunches, then they are probably from a weasel family member. The lunging weasel walk happens when an animal has a long body and short legs. If the tracks look like hops, then it is probably a rabbit, mouse or squirrel. Two-toed tracks White-tailed deer: 3 1/2 inches long and 2 1/2 inches wide Deer tracks look like two half-moon shapes. Sometimes two small, round marks appear behind each foot. These are made by the dewclaws. Deer leave long, narrow trails in deep snow. Their heavy bodies sink into the snow and their legs drag. If the snow is really deep, other deer will follow in the same trail, and you can see many sets of footprints. Four-toed tracks Coyote: 2 3/4 inches long by 2 1/4 inches wide Fox: 2 1/2 inches long by 1 3/4 inches wide These members of the dog family, or canines, have four toes in an egg-shaped print with claw marks clearly visible. The prints of coyotes and domestic dogs are hard to tell apart. Coyote and fox tracks are much alike, but both will follow old animal trails. Dogs, on the other hand, tend to wander all over. Bobcat: 2 inches long by 2 inches wide Cat: 1 inch long by 1 inch wide Members of the cat family, called felines, have four toes in a round print. Their claws do not show. You can tell them apart by their size. Cats stay near towns and houses, while bobcats are found in larger forests. Rabbit: hind foot 3 inches long by 1 inch wide, front foot 1 inch long by 3/4 inches wide Rabbits have front feet that look much like other tracks, but their long back feet are an easy giveaway. Songbirds: 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 inches long Crow: 3 inches long Wild turkey: 4 inches long Birds have three long toes pointing forward and one shorter toe in the back. Look for tail marks in the snow where they have landed and wing patterns where they have taken flight. If you find large wing marks in the snow and then small tracks of a mammal disappear, then you've probably found where a hawk or owl caught a mouse. Five-toed tracks Weasel: 3/4-inch long and 3/4-inch wide Skunk: 1 1/4 inches long and 1 inch wide Otter: 3 1/3 inches wide and 4 inches long These animals, known as mustelids, are in the weasel family and have four larger toes and a smaller fifth toe. The toe pads are pointed, or you can see claws marking the snow. The skunk makes a winding trail as it searches for food. The footprints are close together. Watch for otter tracks near rivers, streams or marshes. Otters leave slides where they run and then dive in the snow on their bellies. The slides are 5 to 15 feet long and begin and end with tracks. Raccoon: front foot 2 1/2 inches long and 2 1/2 inches wide and hind foot 4 inches long and 2 1/4 inches wide Opossum: front foot 2 inches long and 2 inches wide Raccoon prints have five long toes on both front and back feet and are easy to identify. Opossums have front feet with five small toes, but the back foot of the opossum has a thumb that sticks out to the side. Its track looks similar to a tiny human handprint. Opossums often drag their tails as they walk. Beaver: hind foot 5 inches long and 4 1/2 inches wide The beaver has a large back foot with webs between the toes, like a duck. Watch for their tracks near water and look for gnawed trees and bushes nearby. Four in front and five in back Mouse: 1/4 inch long and 1/4 inch wide Squirrel: front foot 1 1/2 inches long and 1 inch wide and back foot 2 inches long and 1 inch wide Squirrel tracks begin and end at trees. Along the way, look for holes in the ground where buried nuts have been found. They use their sense of smell to locate the nuts. Mice tracks are the tiniest footprints of winter. Reading Animal Stories Rabbits that eat buds and twigs in winter cut twigs in a neat 45-degree angle with sharp teeth. Rabbits also chew bark off of low branches of trees. Deer eat buds, small trees and shrubs, but they chew the saplings off and leave a ragged end. A disturbed spot in the snow, especially if blood is present, could be the place where one animal fell prey to another. Great animal stories are out in the snow, just waiting for you. Grab your track guide and see if you can read the wildlife signs.