Book Review: Tracking Animals in Snow

Book Review: Field Guide to Tracking Animals in Snow

by Louise R. Forrest, illustrations by Denise Casey

This is a little late in the season, but we just got a bunch of snow last week, so it is still relevant. This is a nicely laid out book that contains information about all of the mammals in North America, and also their track patterns. It could also be used as a way to track animals in sand or mud as well. The text is accompanied by beautiful drawings, and there is an introduction at the beginning of every section that covers information on that family of animals. Also at the beginning is a very detailed introduction on the different track patterns that are formed in the snow.

Reference: Field Guide to Tracking Animals in Snow, Louise R. Forrest, Stackpole Books: Mechanicsburg, PA, 1988

Spring Wildlife Sightings

Spring Wildlife Sightings

4/9/16

Recently four female deer walked through our yard and into the woods. It was nice to see them after the winter. I also have been seeing a group of about fifteen wild turkeys. Even when it was snowing, they were there walking through the snow. Also, there was a male wild turkey in the woods that was making the gobble, gobble noise at dawn and dusk, like a rooster. I think that it was doing this to mark its territory. We have recently gotten several inches of snow, so it does not quite look like spring yet.

Hairy Woodpecker Pecking on Tree

Hairy Woodpecker pecking on tree

This is a picture I took a few years ago of a hairy woodpecker pecking on a tree in Michigan.  They like to get the insects from under the bark.  You can see some of these pieces of bark on the snow.  They are delightful birds that will make a sharp “Peeeek!” sound if they are startled.  They are similar in markings to the Downy Woodpecker, but they are larger.

 

Leaves Frozen in Icy Lake

Leaves Frozen in Lake

This is a picture of leaves frozen in the ice of an inland lake in Michigan.  It is the same lake in the photo Pine Tree by Frozen Lake .  I think its really interesting the way the leaves got stuck in the ice like this, I’ve never quite seen it this way before, but we had an early freeze last year.

Sunset on a Winter Lake part 2

The sun is almost done setting over East Twin Lake

This is a continuation of yesterday’s theme, taken from the same spot on the same lake, on a different day.  Here the sky was very overcast and the sun was almost done setting, but some of the sun managed to peek out under the clouds.

Sunny Winter Lake

East twin lake on a sunny day

This is a photo of the snow on a lake in Michigan, taken in January. It was very sunny, but windy!

Icy Fall Lake, part 2

East Twin Lake Cloudy Day

Icy East Twin Lake

New ice forming

Icy Fall Lake, part2

2/7/14

This is a continuation of Icy Fall Lake from last week.  These are some additonal shots of a different section of the lake.

Icy Fall Lake

Icy East Twin Lake

Windswept East Twin Lake

 

These pictures were taken in Michigan last fall when we had an early snowfall.  It was very windy, and the snow was blown in rather interesting patterns around the lake.