232 THROUGH ANGOLA 



and distinct as even these tracings suggest, which 

 are printed faintly upon the type to express 

 difficulty and indistinctness. Only a portion of 

 a track is usually visible, generally the toe points, 

 and then only if the hoof can make an impression 

 on the soil. In the case of carnivora, where the 

 soft pads cannot indent the ground, there may be 

 practically no spoor on hard ground, but only a 

 slight displacement of surface earth. 



Spoor of the hind feet of nearly all animals is 

 smaller and less distinctive than that of the fore 

 feet. The droppings of animals can give, like 

 the spoor tracings, but a useful indication and 

 nothing more. These droppings in the case of 

 antelope are generally hard and formed in the 

 dry season, but less so in the rains, or whenever 

 the feed is very moist and green. 



The freshness of the dropping can be judged 

 by its warmth if very recent, its moisture, and 

 its freedom from maggots. The position of the 

 droppings, whether in the sun or shade, and the 

 effect of the dew and evaporation, would have, 

 of course, to be considered in judging the age of 

 any spoor. 



Other signs useful when tracking are those of 

 pressure of animals' bodies on plants, such as 

 crushed or bent grass or stalk, and the age of the 

 track may be judged by the freshness of their 

 bruising or of the earth on them. Marks of 

 teeth, trunk, and horns on leaf and stem show, 

 by the freshness or dryness of the grass, leaves, or 

 branches lying near the track, when the animal 

 has passed. 



