This two-foot-wide trail of tracks through the woods was made by one animal. All guesses welcome as “comments” below. Tomorrow’s post will reveal all.
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This entry was posted on February 11, 2014 by Mary Holland. It was filed under Mystery Photo, Uncategorized .
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Naturally Curious with Mary Holland
One human, two feet, two ski poles.
February 11, 2014 at 12:56 pm
I think you’re right.
February 11, 2014 at 1:13 pm
Animal carrying a dragging stick. Maybe a beaver, but I don’t see a tail drag.
February 11, 2014 at 1:03 pm
An immature Homo sapiens pulling a sled
February 11, 2014 at 1:06 pm
I think a beaver with a stick in its mouth
February 11, 2014 at 1:06 pm
Male turkey dragging his wings!
February 11, 2014 at 1:07 pm
A turkey dragging its wings.
February 11, 2014 at 1:07 pm
male turkey, wings dragging?
February 11, 2014 at 1:08 pm
A human with ski poles?
February 11, 2014 at 1:09 pm
A very overweight raccoon cross-country skiing with his belly dragging in the middle?
February 11, 2014 at 1:18 pm
Male deer before antler shed, following a doe scent trail.
February 11, 2014 at 1:25 pm
Mare turkey. It is that time of year.
February 11, 2014 at 1:28 pm
Turkey tracks….two walking together.
February 11, 2014 at 1:34 pm
too light to be a wide foot-dragging deer. … A turkey dragging wings
February 11, 2014 at 1:41 pm
One animal going one way once? My guess is a muscrat carrying a stick, but that’s low confidence. Maybe a turkey displaying and dragging the tips of its wings?
February 11, 2014 at 1:50 pm
Male turkey or ruffed grouse with tail fanned and wings pointed downward.
February 11, 2014 at 1:53 pm
Looks to me like a young person pulling a sled!
February 11, 2014 at 1:54 pm
I don’t see the tail drag or much of a wander in the walk, but I would still guess porcupine with the quills dragging on the sides. Rebecca
February 11, 2014 at 1:55 pm
I was going to guess porcupine but I didnt feel good about it, BUT now reading all of your comments, I’m going to support those who picked turkey!
February 11, 2014 at 2:05 pm
Boy, I think I’m pretty good at tracks, but without seeing it in person…
How about a tom turkey or two and their wings tips??
Thanks so much Mary, I so enjoy your info every day!
February 11, 2014 at 2:17 pm
A big porcupine with dragging side quills? Or possibly turkey dragging wing tips but the tracks seem too straight for that kind of display?… Hmm, this is a good one Mary!
February 11, 2014 at 2:18 pm
Moose?
February 11, 2014 at 2:26 pm
Hmmm. Porcupine is my best guess.
February 11, 2014 at 2:34 pm
definitely looks like porcupine to me from this angle!
February 11, 2014 at 2:45 pm
Emma, carrying a large stick or wearing saddlebag pack!
February 11, 2014 at 2:46 pm
A fat porcupine whose body quills are dragging on the side in the new soft snow?
February 11, 2014 at 2:49 pm
A human, walking in boots with ski poles hanging from her wrist (your own?). The tips of the poles drag in the snow in more or less straight lines that frame the paces of the her boots. Every now and again the human plants her poles in the snow, which is clearly melting and probably happening at mid day or beyond as the dribbles in the snow all around the tracks indicates tree over and snow melt falling to the ground. This is a good puzzler.
February 11, 2014 at 2:55 pm
skunk?
February 11, 2014 at 2:59 pm
A turkey possibly, but what I see on my property with regards to turkeys in deep snow is a narrow belly rub, approx. 8″ wide & concave in shape
February 11, 2014 at 3:00 pm
On 2nd thought, I agree with Eliza’s comment, your chocolate Lab? carrying a body pack of some sort. My 1st comment is incorrect…
February 11, 2014 at 3:07 pm
Large porcupine.
February 11, 2014 at 3:25 pm
A 24 inch wide track is pretty wide. A male turkey dragging his wings would fit that size track, but they wander around and this is a straight line. Plus I see a lot of footprints and only a one-pass drag.
February 11, 2014 at 3:26 pm
I love all the responses so far! I am leaning turkey, but I’ll throw one more idea out there. A fisher hauling off the foreleg of a deer? The foreleg sticking out of each side of the fisher’s mouth making the drag marks on each side of the central track line?
February 11, 2014 at 3:27 pm
Two ideas; either some sort of bird dragging its wings (possibly some mating ritual) or a carnivore dragging its prey like a coyote with a rabbit in its mouth? HMMM…
February 11, 2014 at 3:29 pm
Great guess Mr. Misavage’s class! I can’t wait to see what the answer is!
Mr. Reidy
February 11, 2014 at 5:44 pm
Male turkey. Birds (and trees) are starting to perk up as the days lengthen and the sunlight color shifts to warmer hues.
February 11, 2014 at 3:30 pm
Not a bird unless the snow was so soft that the toes aren’t clear.
Looks like paw prints, they even seem to be turning sideways so I think it is dragging something.
Or, multiple trips dragging something? But the drag marks are very even…
Two foot wide… That is a lot. So those prints are each as big as our hands….
Very interesting!
Thanks
February 11, 2014 at 3:35 pm
I’m thinking male turkey.
February 11, 2014 at 3:51 pm
Turkey (?)
February 11, 2014 at 3:59 pm
I’ll go with youth and sled…
February 11, 2014 at 4:04 pm
Some one pulling a sled maybe
February 11, 2014 at 4:18 pm
Dog Sled?
February 11, 2014 at 4:26 pm
I’m with the large porcupine group
February 11, 2014 at 5:14 pm
IF it’s really not a single person hauling a sled(!), then perhaps an eagle dragging large prey, leading edge of wing & alula angled down….
Mimsy
February 11, 2014 at 6:10 pm
Porcupine
February 11, 2014 at 6:34 pm
Two camps of thought in our classroom today:
One group likes the buck with head down dragging antlers yet to be shed.
The others think the tracks do not look like deer tracks at all. They reason that the unclear tracks must come from a pad-footed animal about twenty to thirty pounds. Given that (self-derived) criteria, the favorite guess for this group was bobcat with a snowshoe hare in its jaws with ears dragging in the snow on one side and the hind feet dragging on the other.
The first group then argued that is two animals making the tracks, not one.
We eagerly await the answer!
Dan Reidy’s 6th grade class
February 11, 2014 at 7:44 pm
You put a lot of thinking into your guesses — I’m so impressed. Stay tuned tomorrow, and thank you for following my blog!
February 11, 2014 at 10:15 pm
Beaver carrying a stick?
February 11, 2014 at 7:45 pm
a dog wearing a pack
February 11, 2014 at 8:06 pm
porcupine
February 11, 2014 at 9:25 pm
I’m throwing my hat in with the Beaver-stick dragging crowd.
February 11, 2014 at 9:28 pm
First thought was turkey, dragging wings. The footprints confuse me, unless it’s deep snow and the bird is strutting without leaving intermittent foot marks.
February 11, 2014 at 10:48 pm
I’m thinking it’s a turkey.
February 11, 2014 at 11:17 pm
A beaver……
Sent from my iPad
>
February 12, 2014 at 12:23 am
Strutting Gobbler? Optimistic about Spring? 🙂
February 12, 2014 at 1:12 am
Your dog Emma carrying a wide stick through the snow!
February 12, 2014 at 12:13 pm
walking human dragging ski poles
February 13, 2014 at 12:48 am