What’s going on out on the land?
A mystery while tracking in Lake of Bays, 2022.08.13
The skill set of identifying a fresh trail with certainty in the jumbled quilt of the Summer forest floor is definitely an art and science with which I have little purchase… but a skill set that I do feel a growing confidence about is bone identification, and while making our way up the hill in the leaf little there was a small mandible laying fairly exposed with the lingual surface (the side which would be closest to the tongue in the living animal) facing the canopy.
Some scat from Point Grondine
During one of our daily drifts down the Mahzenazing River where we would occasionally have to paddle a little to be sure we didn’t hit an island and wreck out friends canoe, we decided we should stop on one of the islands so we could have lunch and investigate some of the plants a little better. While out of the canoe getting a better look at some Harebell flowers I noticed some scat atop a bed of Star-tipped Reindeer Lichen and White Pine needles
What bones did we find?
I went for a walk with my partner and we found a bunch of cool things while we were out, like Yellow Birch seeds, lots of White-tailed Deer scat, all sorts of neat lichens, and also a couple of bones, which based on their size were most likely from the White-tails.
The first bones I found were pretty interesting, quite a good length and size. It was also cool because it seemed like two bones fused together. I figured this would be a simple bone to figure out where it was from on this other animal, and I figured I should learn more about what purposes this bone supports.
An old s****y mystery
A few years ago I was walking with a friend of mine along the trail towards the forest where I work. Along the way I happened to spot some scat in the middle of the trail. It was tapered and long, fairly fat, and had some seeds in it. The scat appeared to have come from a Coyote but I was at a loss as for what kind of plant the seeds had come from. I looked up a couple of books I have which have a few photographs of seeds but never found an image of a seed which looked right. The mystery haunted me.
Follow The Food
Knowing the plants who are in relationship with the animals we track can help us find the animals we want to learn about. They can point in the direction of where the animals are going or where they will be going. They can show us if we are in the right environment or if we need to keep looking.
This entry is pretty much a story of a recent afternoon spent tracking in the Lake of Bays region, just South West of Algonquin Park, where we spent a few hours following the food and then finding the animal.
What is a Hemipenis?
Why would I write a blog post about another animals penis? I am so down with highlighting differing sexual norms which exist outside of normative considerations within the dominant heterocentric colonial culture. Looking at other ways that animals get down is pretty revealing and helps us remember that there really is no “one right way” that is more natural or good. Life finds many ways to express. And, it’s pretty interesting.
Eramosa River tracking journal, 2022.01.23
I left the house just before 8am so I could get out before too many people were out walking their Dogs. There ends up being a bit of a jumble in the trails when the Dogs come out and it’s just easier to spot everything without much distraction. I also feel a little weird sometimes, standing in the middle of a path, road or even the frozen river where everyone is walking by. If more folks stopped to ask about the tracks or even say hello it would feel less awkward, but usually they just stare, and then walk by cautiously while their Dog barks at me. Even the Dogs know there is something amiss about a person standing there noticing the world. I recount a bit of these feelings because it happened again this morning while I was checking a Grey Squirrel bounding trail along the road by my house.
Mystery scat
Earlier this year, my partner and I were paddling along the Mahzenazing River, heading back in the direction of the park entrance. We had just spent our last night at Point Grondine where we'd seen two Black Bears, three big ass Beavers, and had a late night encounter with either a Bobcat or Lynx - it was too dark to tell.
We were paddling back when my partner had to pull the canoe over so she could pee. While I waited in the canoe I noticed there was some scat on a rock nearby. This is where the mystery began…
Tracking Journal, 2021.12.28
It was really windy at the top of the hill. I was really grateful that I had the forsight to bring my jacket, even if I had that thought that it was supposed to warm up a little over the day. For now it was early, it was windy and I was cold. Opening with my backpack to pull out my coat while trying to not ruin the White-footed Deer Mouse trail in front of me was a challenge, but once the coat was on, my attention was on the trail.
Shrew, Mouse, and Vole Trails
I still get confused between Shrew, Mouse and Vole trails. A couple of mornings ago, when we got a fresh coat of snow, I could look down and see some pretty clear trails running perpendicular to the path I was walking on. They were small, had tracks of feet, and some showed tail drags. Some were hoping, some walking. While I looked at them I realized that I wasn’t 100% on which species or group of species they belonged to.
In light of this conundrum, I thought it would be worthwhile to put a little post together to help me better learn what to look for. Here goes.
Boyne Valley Tracking Journal, 11.12.2021
Once the two of our crew had returned from bringing a car to the next road over, we began our journey through the Boyne Valley, North of Orangeville. I had been there before. The last time was 2019 with my second year of the apprenticeship. It was a great place for trailing White Tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and was the first place I had ever seen Northern River Otter (Lontra canadensis) tracks. I was stoked to be back.
Scapulae pt. 1
Detailing the scapulae I find, where I find them, and who they likely belonged to. I hope to turn this archive into a zine someday, and will make an effort to return to post more images or perhaps just make new posts as I go.
Tracking Journal for 2021.08.15
I watched in awe and wonder, struck by the beauty of this ordinary everyday animal whom we all have seen, likely ignored and passed by on countless occasions. I took a few photos and just continued to watch in amazement and joy at this wonderful being who only a moment ago was pretty much invisible to me. How long had they been hanging out right beside us? Why weren’t they scared? I still havn’t researched all I’d like to but I will be digging deep into the books this week to learn as much as I can. Sometimes it just takes a short experience to open a whole world of wonder that I end up having to pursue.
Another Question Book Post
I was talking with a colleague about howling at their farm and I got to wondering if Coyotes howl while hunting? It seems a little counter intuitive for me as I am always trying to get quiet when I am out tracking with folks. We are trying our best to sneak up on animals and avoid giving away our positions. Perhaps because our eyes are our dominant sense we don’t need to rely too heavily on sound to navigate with others, but what about Coyotes?
Rock Dove Kill site?
I was on my morning walk along the riverside when up the path I came across a large pile of feathers.
I love how a simple walk in the morning, just to get out of the house can turn into a chance to really look at the details of a killsite and study the gaits of the possible predators, and look at the structure of a feather. What amazing teachers these wild neighbours are.
Tracking along the Eramosa River, Jan 17, 2021
Today I went out to find Beaver sign which a friend had told me about yesterday evening. He had seen what looked like a trail emerging from the river, heading up the bank and into the scrubby wooded edge on the far side of the river from a trail by his house and was thinking it was a Beaver. I had previously seen Beaver signs further up the river when I was out trailing an Opossum a few weeks ago and it would be likely that the Beavers up there would come down to his neck of the woods. I thought I would go and check it out.
Eastern Cottontail Rabbit killsite on the way to work
The blood was still bright and vibrant when I took the photo. That's what first caught my eye while walking by, the living red against the white. Tufts of brindly hair strewn about the edge of the Staghorn Sumac grove, with lots of Rabbit pellets punctuating the bounding tracks through the snow.
I couldn't make it all out with the short time I had but I have a feeling the Coyotes were coming from the Southeast, making their way Northwest. More wild spaces Eastwise, and the city was behind me to the West. The Coyote tracks are often headed Westwise, flowing with the river.
Tracking Journal Jan 01, 2021
There were familiarities and mysteries while out tracking with Carolyn. She asked if I wanted to go check out a some Hemlocks she knew and I, as per usual, was down. She picked me up and on route she asked if we should go look at the Beavers she’d been visiting with her family. Again, I was down.
Tracking Journal, Dec 30, 2020
I went back to the spot along the river trail where I encountered the Opossum trail a few weeks ago hoping that I may find the sign of something or someone out in the newly fallen snow. I did find something…
Tracking Journal : December 25, 2020
I heard Coyotes howling as I walked up to the forest. Maybe two or three, but the way their songs work, it sounds more like 5 or 6. I only was able to record the last little bit as I didn’t have my phone out and really wasn’t expecting it.
When I got to the mouth of the forest I saw some Canine tracks coming in from the field to the East, onto the road, and then tuck quickly back into the woods. I noted them, and then continued in and onto the main trail, only stopping to introduce myself to the woods and announce my intentions.