side of the hoof as well as along the back and outer edges. Goats with limited 

 range often have these horny edges overgrown and turned inward over the 

 central pad. The pig's foot is rounded and softer, and leaves a wider and 

 shorter track than other hoofed mammals, with no indication of sharp edges 

 at the rear. Also, like all marsh-loving mammals, the pig's fore and hind feet 

 seldom fall on the same spot or in alignment with each other, while deer and 

 sheep tracks usually show fore and hind feet "registering" or in the same line. 

 The track of the moose, largest native hoofed mammal, can he readily told from 

 that of a cow of equal si2;e by the long, pointed hoof marks, a single hoof being 

 about seven inches long and only about one-fourth as wide. 



A few mammals have peculiarities in their pedal extremities that make 

 every print sign its maker's name. One of these is the muskrat. Its huge hind 

 feet, broadened and webbed for swimming, leave large prints that do not ap- 

 pear to belong to the same animal as do the small prints of its front feet. Beaver 

 and otter also have paddle feet, although there is less difference between the 

 size of the front and hind footprints. The heavy body of the beaver gives it a 

 strong tendency to toe inwards, the third toe of each foot almost touching a 

 straight line through the center of the series. The otter, because of its long 

 body, leaves a running track of bunches of four prints and a walking track of a 

 close and sinuous series of prints. Another mammal with a telltale signature 

 is the opossum. On each hind foot it has a large, opposable big toe, without 

 any nail or claw. This toe, so useful in climbing, leaves an odd, thumb-like 

 imprint at each step. 



The other mammals may be grouped according to their gait. Those with 

 long hind legs bound, so that their tracks fall in groups, the hind feet usually 

 coming down together and falling ahead of the front feet, which serve only 

 for support. Rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks and some mice show this. Jack 

 rabbits do not quite pair their hind feet, while cottontails and squirrels usually 

 do. Climbing mammals usually keep the front feet side by side when running 

 — thus the track of the squirrel can be told from that of the rabbit. Another 

 separating factor is the habit of the squirrel of running in a bee-line from the 

 base of one tree to the next, while the rabbit usually steers a course in the 

 open. The friction pads of the squirrel's feet often leave very distinct indenta- 

 tions. The details of the rabbit track are usually blurred by the hair between 

 the toes, which is especially long in winter. The individual prints of the chip- 

 munk are much like those of the squirrel, except in size, but the usual running 

 pattern shows one fore foot somewhat ahead of the other. Several kinds of 

 mice with climbing habits or Vv'ith long hind legs leave tracks arranged much 

 like those of the squirrel. 



Some other mammals are short-legged and have either wide, heavy bodies, 

 as badger, porcupine and heaver, or long, slender bodies, as otter, mink and 

 weasel. Both groups, when unhurried, leave a well marked trail with many 



545 



