Wildlife may be all around us but none are posing for a photo...

Can’t find any wildlife that will pose for photos for the City Nature Challenge? Consider looking for signs that they were around.

Normally when one thinks about sharing observations of wildlife with iNaturalist one thinks of uploading photos or sound recordings. There is another option – this is to photograph ‘evidence’ that critters were present at a given location sometime in the past. Perhaps better to see bear scat than the bear itself!

During the 2024 CNC add a new activity to your to do list. When out exploring look for scat (aka poop), and footprints.

Many species are elusive… and these observations will provide evidence that an animal was present in the area just not at the time that you were exploring. (NOTE: you could also include evidence and photos of the critter in one observation)

Below are a few basic guidelines for sharing these types of observations.

• Add a few words in the observation notes or description box to indicate ‘tracks’ or ‘footprints’ or ‘scat’.
• If possible, add annotation ‘evidence of presence’. Adding this information will get attention from thematic experts…
• Take a photo showing the gait overall, then some closeups of individual tracks/footprints. Take those from straight above the track and include an object for scale. It can be a ruler or a coin or other object of known size. (The same goes for scat. Taking a photo with a scale helps later when identifying it.)
• When posting footprints remember to include a second photo highlighting the track (series of footprints. Was the animal walking, trotting, loping or bounding? Learn a few terms related to gait.
• Before heading out watch the beginner video and learn your ABCs to tracking! Because this presentation was created by Jonah Evans (@jonahevans) for an audience in Texas a few of the species mentioned will not be found in our region but the examples/comments are relevant. (Not too many feral hogs in the Atlantic Provinces!)
• Practice…. Many tracks found along frequently used walking trails will likely be of dogs. These footprints come in all sizes! Practice your tracking skills by examining these footprints – learn the various features of a track. Keep an eye open for coyote tracks!

Hints for special conditions: Snow can be difficult to take photos in because cameras had white balance settings that are usually automatic. Some cameras have a setting for snow. With some cameras, the images just look very blue. Winter is a great time to document tracks. Get to know the settings in your camera - change the white balance to "auto" or "snow" (sometimes it says "beach/sand/snow" or something similar. (Hopefully by the time that the CNC takes place snow will have disappeared, but the info above may be useful for other times of the year.)

Thanks to Kim Cabrera (@beartracker) for assistance gathering info for this article.

Posted on March 25, 2024 06:57 PM by mkkennedy