PART ONEGROUP III

JACK RABBIT. (TWO-THIRDS NATURAL SIZE)(A) Front foot. (B) Hind foot.

JACK RABBIT. (TWO-THIRDS NATURAL SIZE)

(A) Front foot. (B) Hind foot.

THE Varying Hare, though scarcely half the size of the jack-rabbit, makes almost as large a track, and when he spreads his feet in passing over frozen snow his tracks are fully as large. The entire track picture, however, differs materially from that of the jack—the individual tracks stand much closer together, and the feet are usually paired. The hare makes many different track pictures, but he cannot long refrain from making the jump—shown slightly reduced in the illustration—and a following of the trail for a short distance will always dispel any existing doubt, even if the individual tracks are larger than those of a young jack-rabbit. There is a much greater likelihood of mistaking the varying hare's trail for that of the cottontail rabbit, with which it has many points of resemblance. Only the slenderness of the rabbit's foot serves as a distinguishing feature in the trail so long asthey are both unalarmed. If, however, they are put on the quick jump, the similarity of the two trails disappears.

VARYING HARE

VARYING HARE. (SLIGHTLY REDUCED)

(1) At leisure (one to three feet). (2) Steady lope (three to five feet); the front tracks blend into one mark. (3) On the quick jump (five to twelve feet).Varying Hare track when the snow is deeper than a couple of inches.VARYING HARE TRACKS

(1) At leisure (one to three feet). (2) Steady lope (three to five feet); the front tracks blend into one mark. (3) On the quick jump (five to twelve feet).

Varying Hare track when the snow is deeper than a couple of inches.

VARYING HARE TRACKS

Cottontail RabbitTracks—(1) At leisure.(2) In a hurry.

AS can be easily seen from a comparison of the life-size track picture of the varying hare and cottontail—drawn from tracks made under the same tracking conditions,i. e., on ground covered by about two inches of snow, and while the animals were running at approximately the same speed—the tracks of the cottontail, besides being much more slender than those of the hare, are also more pencil-shaped at the point of the toes. The toes are but faintly indicated, and the toenails practically indiscernible, while in the case of the hare both are plainly visible; in fact, the imprint of the toenails is a prominent feature in the track of the hare. In every case where any doubt exists in regard to the tracks of the two small varieties, this alone is sufficient to settle it; as the toe marks are more prominent in the front track, its appearance alone is sufficient for the trailer to form a correct conclusion. Except when jumping with the hind feet into thefront tracks two individual tracks of the cottontail never blend into one mark on account of the slenderness of the feet. The jump picture of both the small rabbits in dry snow sometimes appears very much like that of the marten; but by following the trail for a short distance one will always dispel any doubt.

In illustrated articles the writer has seen drawings and photographs of tracks and trails claimed to have been made by the New England cottontail which looked exactly like those made by the varying hare. If there was no mistake in identification, the Western cottontail, which the illustrations represent, evidently makes tracks entirely different from those of the Eastern variety. There is every reason to believe, however, that the track ofthe same type of rabbit is the same in every part of the country.

COTTON TAIL RABBIT

While the pursuit of big game is exciting sport at times, hunting rabbits is always attended with soul-satisfying fun. A famous occupant of the White House found recreation and pleasurein it, and I believe that few hunters who ever entered into the true spirit of the sport have failed to obtain a great deal of pleasure and healthful exercise.

COTTONTAIL RABBITThe dotted line shows the real length of foot.

COTTONTAIL RABBIT

The dotted line shows the real length of foot.

THE squirrel practically always pairs its feet when on the ground. Like the other members of Group II its hind feet are much larger than the forefeet, and, as in the track-picture, are always planted ahead of the latter. The hind feet point outward, so that even by imperfect imprints, it may readily be seen in which direction the trail leads. As there is no other track known to the writer which could be confused with the squirrel's, it is not necessary to describe it; the illustration serves every purpose. Where the remains of the feast of a "varmint" are left in the woods—meat, entrails, or bones—squirrel tracks are found in great numbers, and the tyro is liable to take them for those of other animals. Ordinarily a careful look is sufficient to disillusion him, both as to the identity of the tracks and the diet of the squirrel.

SQUIRREL. (ABOUT TWO-THIRDS NATURAL SIZE)

Besides tracks, the squirrel leaves other signs which betray its presence in the woods—heaps ofcone chips near stumps and other elevations, or strewn under trees one may find twigs from which buds have been eaten. Sometimes the cries ofbirds whose nests the squirrel may be robbing of eggs or young, will betray his presence. It is an entertaining pastime to hunt squirrels with a small-caliber rifle.

The writer considers the squirrel one of the most injurious creatures of our woods, and believes that in hunting him it is better to use some other weapon than the noisy shotgun.

THOUGH their habitat is entirely different, these two animals make very similar tracks and trails, so they are properly treated of in the same division.

While the marten is a resident of the woods, the black-footed ferret never leaves the open prairie, where it lives in abandoned prairie-dog holes, usually leaving its hole every second night, unless it happens to kill a rabbit. It is the most relentless enemy of the rabbit, and lives almost exclusively on its flesh.

The track of the black-footed ferret is about the size of a small marten's, but in soft snow the soles of the toes show more prominently than those of the latter, whose strongly haired feet usually cause the sole marks to appear rather indistinct.

Sometimes the trail of the marten looks like that of the cottontail, but if followed for a short distance it always assumes again the form of aparallel trapeze, the evidence of the usual marten motion to which the ferret adheres at all times except in the pursuit of prey.

Marten track (one-third natural size), showing the four foot marks (not the usual jump, see trails). The black-footed ferret makes a slightly smaller track and shows not quite so much hair.

There is no reason for mistaking one for the other, because, as aforesaid, they do not inhabit the same locality; but if one does not know of the existence of the wild ferret, then, of course,one might track a supposed marten on the prairie—as did the writer when he first came West—where that animal never has been found.

(1) Marten tracks. The lower part of the left-hand drawing shows the usual marten motion, namely, the jump. The upper part of the same drawing shows the walk, which is always only for a short distance. (2) The black-footed ferret always pairs its feet and never walks. (3) Running.

Tracking marten and shooting them is as successful a method as trapping them.

If ferrets are tracked and their skin is wanted whole, a trap not smaller than a No. 4 should be set at the entrance of the hole, as the pretty "varmint" mutilates himself if trapped and not soon killed. If a ferret runs a rabbit into a hole he may not leave it for two or three weeks, otherwise, as stated, the ferret usually travels forth every second night.

IT can be seen from the accompanying illustration of front and hind tracks that the footmarks of the otter are rather unusually round; and on hard ground, which allows but a slight impression, the almost circular standing imprints of toes and heel show plainly. If the individual tracks are invisible in dry snow, the form of the trail, together with the drag made at intervals by the long tail of the otter, obviates any doubt as to what animal has made the trail.

The otter has a habit of leaving the streams along which he lives, or which he visits, at regular places, and makes what are called slides near which parts of fish are frequently scattered. Excrements containing fish bones found on boulders and promontories in the rivers are unmistakable otter signs that betray his presence, even if no tracks or slides are seen along the banks of the stream.

OTTER. (SLIGHTLY LESS THAN HALF NATURAL SIZE)(A) Right forefoot track. (B) Right hind-foot track. (1) Jumping. (2) Walking. (3) Running. The shaded line shows the drag of the tail.

OTTER. (SLIGHTLY LESS THAN HALF NATURAL SIZE)

(A) Right forefoot track. (B) Right hind-foot track. (1) Jumping. (2) Walking. (3) Running. The shaded line shows the drag of the tail.

The otter is perhaps the greatest wanderer among the mammals, and may, therefore, frequently be found where he was supposed to be extinct; though if he visits a trout-stream or pond he usually makes his stay long enough todeplete it to a greater extent than a host of fishermen would.

Where otter signs are seen along small streams or at favorable places along rivers, waiting for them with a shotgun during evenings and moonlight nights usually yields satisfactory results. If one is shot, and there is no danger of the current taking it away, it is well to keep quiet for a time, as they often fish in pairs, and the second frequently gives as good a chance for a shot as the first.

The whistling call of the otter can easily be imitated, and at big rivers on a clear night calling them is good sport. However, the sportsman must be patient, as the otter will answer immediately, but will take his own time in coming. On small streams it is well to post oneself as near as possible to the water, as otherwise the otter will pass unseen in the shadow of the bank.

Sometimes the otter travels for miles on land, and if daylight surprises him there he will hunt shelter for the day in any convenient hole. A trap set in it, and the entrance closed with a boulder is usually the easiest way to get his skin.

As the animal is especially destructive in trout streams the sportsman gunner will always do a great favor to the disciple of the rod when he closes the career of one of these four-footed poachers.

THE mink track presents some similarity to those of the marten and the black-footed ferret, but it is much smaller than that of the marten, and the toe-marks are even more prominent than those of the ferret, for which it might be mistaken at times if it were not that the form of the trails is different. The mink never travels for long distances without showing at least three tracks plainly in the jump-picture, while the ferret practically never does this. The track of the ferret is found near ice-bound streams only when it crosses them to reach other hunting-grounds, while the mink, being almost as skilful at catching fish as the otter, generally travels along a stream's course.

In destructiveness to small game the mink is perhaps only equaled by the domestic cat, which, in remote districts, he resembles in the habit of hunting at all hours of the day.

MINK. (LESS THAN ONE-HALF NATURAL SIZE)(A) Left front-track. (B) Hind-tracks (a characteristic track picture). (1) Ordinary jump. (2) Easy running. (3) Running.

MINK. (LESS THAN ONE-HALF NATURAL SIZE)

(A) Left front-track. (B) Hind-tracks (a characteristic track picture). (1) Ordinary jump. (2) Easy running. (3) Running.

Trapping is practically the only paying method of hunting him. When he goes upstream he leaves the water below rapids and travels along its edge usually until he again reaches quiet water. If a trap is placed in the interveningspace—the trail of the animal will show the trapper the best point—every mink in that vicinity may be caught without the trouble of baiting traps, which is a rather uncertain method where game and fish are plentiful.

MINK]

ALL lovers of our feathered song-birds kill the weasel at every opportunity, believing it to be one of the deadliest enemies to bird-life; and if sportsmen bear in mind that every time it gets a chance the little marauder fastens its teeth in the neck of a grouse or a rabbit, they will undoubtedly show it no mercy. Considering, however, the number of injurious rodents it kills, it is doubtful if this "little marten" is, on the whole, more destructive than useful. Certainly it does no more harm than the absolutely useless squirrel. I leave it to others to argue whether it should be killed or spared. I do not spare it in ruffed grouse cover and near home, where I wish to give the birds absolute protection.

Its tracks and trail, with the exception of the walk, which the weasel does not use where it could be tracked, are exact miniatures of those of its large relative, the marten, and are, judging from personal observations, frequently mistaken forthose of other animals even by sportsmen of long standing. One will mistake its trail for that of the deer, another for that of a coyote, fox or lynx, and still another, under favorable tracking conditions, will confound its track with that of the mink or ferret. In loose snow, when its trail is likely to be mistaken for that of any of those mentioned, it should be considered that the jumps of the ermine constantly vary in length, while the individual tracks made by the other named animals usually stand a regular distance apart.

If the tracker follows an ermine's tracks which he takes to be those of a mink, he should soon discover that the animal has entered every hole and crevice along the trail, and that, judging by the number of tracks around them, it found rock piles, logs, brush heaps, etc., very interesting and attractive. Now, marten or mink investigate these things simply by passing over or through them—if they do not stop inside—but they never make regular paths around them as the ermine does. Besides this, the ermine makes a track hardly one-third as large as that of a small marten.

ERMINE TRACKS. (HIND FEET, LIFE SIZE)(1) Ordinary jump. (2) Running.

ERMINE TRACKS. (HIND FEET, LIFE SIZE)

(1) Ordinary jump. (2) Running.

I have again and again pointed out the above features to men with whom I have hunted, yet, presumably on account of not being thrown on their own resources at the time, they seemingly paid little attention to them, for I observed that they repeated their mistakes just as soon as opportunity offered. The secret of successful trailing can be acquired only by the careful and observant.

The features of a track or trail, once they are thoroughly impressed on the mind, will always be remembered; and he who is too careless to take note of them, even when they are pointed out, has only himself to blame if he spends time—hours perhaps—in the pursuit of the trail of an animal he does not want.

BEAVER

BEAVER FEET (ONE-THIRD SIZE)

THE beaver was once distributed to a vast extent all over the globe, but is now found in comparatively few sections of the Old and New Worlds, and nowhere in great abundance. The state of Montana, which until recently had the largest number of them within its boundaries, joined, during 1907, those Stateswhere this interesting animal is practically extinct, and the blackening "beaver stumps" along its streams bear witness to the shame of the legislative assembly of 1907, which left the beaver without protection. For the extermination of the beaver in this State the wealthy classes, and notthe trappers, must bear the blame, for without the consent of the former the trapper could not even have decreased the number of them without endangering his own liberty.

BEAVER. (ABOUT ONE-HALF NATURAL SIZE)(A) Track of right hind foot. (B) Track of right forefoot.

BEAVER. (ABOUT ONE-HALF NATURAL SIZE)

(A) Track of right hind foot. (B) Track of right forefoot.

Where the beaverisprotected, he increases rapidly, and if hunted with a rifle, he affords asmuch excitement as any game that roams the woods.

BEAVER STUMP

THE BEAVER'S HOME

Business instinct, as well as sportsmanship, should urge sportsmen to concerted action in order to preserve and increase the comparatively few beaver colonies now left on our continent.

BEAVER TRAILS OR SLIDES

BEAVER TRAILThe third toetouchesthe center line.

BEAVER TRAIL

The third toetouchesthe center line.

The beaver's tracks most strikingly represent the fourth group of mammals in this treatise.In the effort to support and steady the body adequately, the animal endeavors to plant its feet as near as possible under the center of its body, but its corpulency prevents, and the result is a track so ridiculous that it is laughable. The front tracks are covered with the hind feet, the third toenails of which reach the center line, and the heel of which stand, according to the size of the specimen which made the trail, from four to eightinches from it. The nails of the two inside toes of the hind feet are but to a limited extent visible as the web between the toes protrudes them. Where the beaver is scarce and much pursued, the imprint of a forefoot near the water's edge may be discovered occasionally here and there; in this case the prominence of the toenails is unmistakable. I may state here, that a front track at the water's edge is often the only sign which may be found along a stream where beavers have become very wary; they seem to be able to live on almost nothing—leaves, roots, etc.—for not a single cutting can be discovered in such cases. Where not sought extensively, the hunter seldom notes the tracks of this aquatic fur-bearer; cut willows or tree stumps are, if not a surer, at least a more easily distinguished indication of their presence, while on much-used slides the tracks could not be seenanywhere. It has been the writer's experience that in every case in which he observed the building of a new house by one of these animals, the builder was invariably a female providing for a happy family event.

ON our continent there is no other animal which is responsible for so many broken necks and limbs as the badger. While in pursuit of his prey, he digs holes in the ground, which when grown over with weeds or grass, are almost certain death-traps for the unwary rider.

The man who enjoys riding after wolves or the fox considers the badger as a menace, and is never likely to look upon it with any degree of favor, notwithstanding its decided usefulness as a destroyer of undesirable rodents. I myself bit the dust of the prairie four times within a couple of months on account of this animal, though there was no further damage than a broken gunstock and sore limbs. I have since killed everyone of the tribe when a chance offered, though with some feeling of regret on account of their desirable features.

The track of the badger is striking from the prominence of the five-nail marks of the forefeetand the twisted inward appearance of the hind track which usually stands squarely in the front track. Considering the size of the tracks, the step-marks stand close together—about seven inches—and, as in all animals of this group, to some extent off from the center line.

BADGER

BADGER TRACKS; LEFT. (SLIGHTLY REDUCED)

It is readily tracked down, and when its hole is approached, the animal frequently exhibits its head as a target from its curiosity to see what is coming. If run into a hole, it will almost invariablyreappear within a few minutes. If it offers no chance for a shot, a trap placed at the entrance and covered nicely generally brings about its destruction. If no trap is at hand it can be confined to its hole by tying a piece of paper or a rag to a stick and placing it not less than two feet from the entrance, which will prevent its leaving the hole for twenty-four hours or so. This is a surer method of keeping the animal a prisoner than blocking the entrance, and works satisfactorily also with other marauders that take to holes.

A fox can usually be held thus for several days, and by this ruse I have actually starved two of them to death. There was in each case three entrances, and but one trap at hand, which was in both instances uncovered by the prisoners during the first night.

BADGER(A) Walking. (B) Running.

BADGER

(A) Walking. (B) Running.

As the ground was frozen hard, I did not wish to bother with setting the trap at another entrance, so I left things as they were, after covering the instrument again. But the foxes knew it was there all the same, and did not again try to leave their prison by that exit, and the otherentrances were guarded by that fearful specter of paper. Finally each one died about eight feet from the scarecrow—about five feet inside the hole, which was examined daily—one duringthe nineteenth, and the other during the twenty-second day of their imprisonment. Had the ground not been frozen so hard as it was, the experiment would have been unsuccessful, as each of the foxes would of course have dug out at some other spot. The latter method of escape will be employed by the badger in every case where the trap is not properly covered.

IT may appear out of place to discuss this creature which has no sportive quality whatever, but its trail is so conspicuous in snow that it cannot be passed without being noticed, and the tyro, attracted by the size of the tracks, will in many instances follow it, thinking he is on the trail of something else.

A short time ago I trailed a supposedly lost, inexperienced hunting companion who had run across the trail of a "bear," as he thought, and followed and killed "Bruin," who happened to be up a tree. When I caught up with the young fellow, he was contemplating his broken gunstock, smashed in finishing the "varmint," but proudly exhibited, to my great hilarity, the "bear" which may have weighed about twenty pounds, and whose fur consisted mainly of quills.

PORCUPINE

Before I got acquainted with the "pine-porker," I tried in vain for a period of fourmonths to ascertain the identity of an animal whose tracks I frequently saw on a road. Only the marks of the soles were visible there, and none of the many men I asked knew that track, though they knew the animal which made it verywell, as developed later, when tracking conditions became so that I could follow the trail to its end.

If conditions are half-favorable, the imprints of the toenails—four on the forefeet and five on the hind feet—are always visible.

PORCUPINE TRACKS(1) Walk. (2) Run.

PORCUPINE TRACKS

(1) Walk. (2) Run.

FEET OF THE PORCUPINEFour toes on front and five toes on hind feet (about one-half natural size)

FEET OF THE PORCUPINE

Four toes on front and five toes on hind feet (about one-half natural size)

SIGN OF THE PORCUPINE(Bark eaten from the tree)

SIGN OF THE PORCUPINE

(Bark eaten from the tree)

If the snow is a few inches deep, the tracks stand in a trough-shaped trail because the animal's body almost touches the ground. The toes point inward, and almost touch the center line. In the snowless woods numerous small dead trees attract the attention of even those not interested in forestry. If these trees are examined they will reveal the mark of the porcupine, easily recognized by the partly eaten bark.

Along the streams of the Bad Lands the limbs of cottonwood trees are sometimes depleted of every vestige of bark, which loss ultimately causes the death of the trees. Where forests are cared for on an economical basis, the porcupine is certainly a proper subject for extermination.

Their meat is excellent if fried quickly in hot lard; roasted, or cooked slowly, it emits an odor repellent even to a hungry man.

THOUGH an inexcusable intruder in the chicken coop and where game birds are raised, the skunk is decidedly useful from the standpoint of the forester or of the farmer. In the writer's opinion, sportsmen if they encounter him in the woods should cease to kill the animal just because it is "only a skunk"; others of the fraternity advance the "just because" argument if they are questioned why they "shoot" the nests of useful hornets. The skunk may rob a few birds' nests during the summer, but his main diet consists of larvæ and berries, and by destroying the former he is of inestimable value to the forests and fields near his residence.

I am thoroughly convinced that his introduction and absolute protection in localities where moths, butterflies and the like, in their undeveloped stage, have become a menace, would greatly help to solve the problem of rendering these pests harmless.

SKUNK(A) Front track. (B) Hind track (life size). (1) Easy lope. (2) Walk.

SKUNK

(A) Front track. (B) Hind track (life size). (1) Easy lope. (2) Walk.

With every skunk we kill we interfere with thebalance of nature, and the resulting deficit has finally to be met with the pocketbook by paying for artificial substitutes for nature, which if left alone would do the work much better.

In the summer woods it is not so much the skunk's tracks which tell of his presence and merits, as the numerous small holes in the ground, about a couple of inches deep, from which the animal procures the larvæ there awaiting the final stage of development.

The soles of the skunk's feet are similar to those of the badger, while their size about corresponds with that of the domestic cat; the toenails always show conspicuously under fair tracking conditions.

The individual tracks stand about half as far apart as do those of the domestic cat, and are always considerably out of line. Like the other members of this group, the skunk betrays himself by his trail; he is a slow animal, and presumably would not put on speed if he were capable of it, since, when foraging he is never in a hurry, and if molested it is usually the disturber who prefers to employ speed.

IT is out of the question to treat the signs and tracks of birds with the same thoroughness as those of mammals, because the tracks of several birds reproduce exactly those of domestic fowls, and those made by young birds of one kind may look like those of old birds of another variety. A description of bird tracks will, however, be found interesting, and perhaps useful at certain times, especially by the inexperienced hunter.

The locality where a given track is seen is the main point to be considered. Tame turkeys and domestic chickens do not, as a rule, venture great distances from the barnyard, so if tracks similar to theirs are seen far from human habitation, it is usually safe to conclude that wild birds made them. In the case of waterfowls, however, even the consideration of the locality, under certain circumstances, does not exclude errors; so the hunter, if he sees tracks from which he mightdeduce the presence of these birds in his immediate locality, should employ his resources to find out for certain whether his deductions are correct or not. The descriptions are of necessity limited, and the reader should study the illustrations as the more important part of the matter.

The tracks of this, the largest of game birds, differ in nowise from those of the domestic kind. In the woods—in wild turkey country—they usually indicate their presence by scratching up the ground cover in search of food, just as domestic fowls do under similar circumstances, and by their droppings. The latter are the more important as a means of identification.

Wild turkeys, when habitually or temporarily frequenting a given locality, have their favorite trees upon which they roost, and under these trees the droppings will be very plentiful. Some hunters wait at such roosting places during the evening or morning and get their game; sometimes the bird may have treed five hundred yards or more away, but the expert, who is not given to guesswork, makes it his purpose to ascertain all the turkey trees in a district, notes the easiestway to approach them, and then, during the early evening hours he will, from a convenient point, mark down the birds which he hears treeing. Then during the hour before daybreak he will go noiselessly as near as possible to a roosting tree which he knows harbors one or more turkeys, and after it is light enough to shoot he will experience little trouble in stalking as close as is necessary to get his bird.

The track of the sage hen is about the size of that of a small domestic chicken, but the toes at their base are somewhat broader, giving the entire track a different aspect.

In the spring and autumn months the birds frequent sagebrush flats and hillsides, and during the early autumn they seek the vicinity of water, and there, if it were not that their toes are rather short in comparison with their broadness, the tracks might be mistaken for those of the pheasant in any place where that game bird has been introduced.

TURKEY. (LARGE DRAWING TWO-THIRDS NATURAL SIZE)(1) Walking. (2) Strutting.

TURKEY. (LARGE DRAWING TWO-THIRDS NATURAL SIZE)

(1) Walking. (2) Strutting.

PHEASANT. (NATURAL SIZE)

The middle toe of the pheasant stands almost in a straight line in the trail, and this feature is the most striking one whereby to distinguish its track from the tracks of any of our native game birds.

Ruffed Grouse. (Two-thirds natural size) Blue Grouse.

The members of this class, in which are included the various varieties of the ruffed grouse and those of the Spruce or Blue grouse, all spread their feet in similar fashion, and walk with the middle toes pointed inward to a considerabledegree. Because of this similarity the size of the tracks and the length of steps are the only means by which to identify the particular species which made them. The ruffed grouse make the shortest steps and the smallest tracks.

RUFFED GROUSE

BLUE GROUSE

The illustrations show the tracks and trail of a dusky grouse of ordinary size, and of an unusually big ruffed grouse cock.

SHARP-TAILED GROUSE

The drawings were made under ideal tracking conditions; and only then is it possible to note the difference in the number of the knots of themiddle toe. Though, as a general rule, the ruffed grouse usually frequents rather low country and the blue-grouse tribe is generally found on high grounds, the locality where a track is seen gives no sure indication of the species. Thewriter has frequently encountered the ruffed grouse at altitudes of over seven thousand feet, and the blue grouse lower down than he ever found the ruffed variety.

Sharp-tailed Grouse. (Two-thirds natural size) Sage Grouse.

From the prairie hen to the sharp-tailed grouse, they all belong to one order as far as their tracks are concerned. A prairie chicken does not spread the toes to the same extent as does the grouse of the woods, and the middle toes stand also somewhat straighter in the line of the trail. The tracks made by the sharp-tailed grouse are always of a rather blurred appearance because of the heavily feathered feet.

The size of the quail's track is about that of a domestic pigeon. A peculiarity of the track is that the mark of the hind toe stands comparatively far off from the track on account of its singular disproportion to the size of the foot.

In the pursuit of grouse, chickens, etc., the hunter usually notes tracks less than other signs. Foremost among the latter are the places where the birds take sand baths, where stray feathers will usually be found. Countless interwovensmall paths, leading everywhere and nowhere in grass and grain fields, are infallible signs that birds have fed there.

QUAIL. (NATURAL SIZE)

The neatest bird track seen in upland hunting is, in the writer's opinion, that of the woodcock. True, this fascinating Long-face has generally gone to warmer climes before winter sets in, butoccasionally an early snowstorm catches him, and then his tracks are a striking feature near springy places in forests, or under dense trees that hold most of the snow aloft on their branches. The splendid imprints are as unmistakable among bird tracks as the tracks of the mountain sheep among big game, and as unforgettable if once seen.

WOODCOCK. (NATURAL SIZE)

The tracks of these aquatic game birds are so much alike that only the difference in size makes it possible to distinguish the species and varieties of ducks and geese; if they are of similar size they cannot possibly be told apart. Where the tracks are seen during cold weather at small open streams or springs, it is certain that the birds visit there at night, doubtlessly coming from a big stream or lake, perhaps many miles distant; by waiting for them at sundown royal sport can be obtained. During summer, on grassy places near water, young geese and ducks usually make numerous small paths, similar to those made by upland birds, but broader.

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