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Animal Tracking Requirements
Is your club going on a campout near water, maybe the ocean, river or swampy area? This a great place to work on the animal tracking honor. Animals need water so it should be easy to find some mammal or bird tracks. Have different Pathfinders help demonstrate things, this is especially fun at the beach. They can demonstrate making tracks in the sand by running, walking, different sizes of people, and direction of travel.
One requirement that would not be a good idea to complete while on a campout is to set up a feeding station, and then look at the tracks. This could encourage wild animals to become dependent on humans for food. Instead have the Pathfinders look along the waters edge for tracks in the animal's natural environment.
To learn the tracks before heading out make an "Animal Track Board" showing pictures of animals and their tracks. You should be able to find pictures of the animal tracks in the following websites.
If one of your weekend activities is to learn animal tracking but you have a group of Pathfinders that have already earned their Animal Tracking honor. Let them help teach but also might be a good time to have them start a journal of animal tracking information. Include drawings or photographs of each set of tracks that they find and identify. Include track measurements and describe the location, features, and clues related to each track.
One requirement that would not be a good idea to complete while on a campout is to set up a feeding station, and then look at the tracks. This could encourage wild animals to become dependent on humans for food. Instead have the Pathfinders look along the waters edge for tracks in the animal's natural environment.
To learn the tracks before heading out make an "Animal Track Board" showing pictures of animals and their tracks. You should be able to find pictures of the animal tracks in the following websites.
If one of your weekend activities is to learn animal tracking but you have a group of Pathfinders that have already earned their Animal Tracking honor. Let them help teach but also might be a good time to have them start a journal of animal tracking information. Include drawings or photographs of each set of tracks that they find and identify. Include track measurements and describe the location, features, and clues related to each track.
- Beartracker's Animal Tracks Den - This great field guide for identifying animal tracks, complete with pictures and drawings of tracks, has background information on each animal and their habitat, and tips for finding animal tracks. Download the three-page PDF guide to tracks which includes room for drawing in the tracks you find. Use the website pictures to identify tracks from mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and insects.
- Identifying and Preserving Wildlife Tracks (PDF File)
- Collecting Animal Tracks - by Nova Scotia Museum
- 4 2 Explore - Animal Tracks - This terrific site covers the basics of tracking with a plethora of rich links for the classroom. Don't miss the lesson plans with language arts integration ideas at Websites for Teachers, and lots of student pages to download.
- Follow that footprint, paw print, hoof print
- Tracking Animals - UNC School of Education
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A naturalist from the SUNY College of Environmental Forestry discusses Common Animal Tracks.
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