Joseph Litke

Striped skunk tracks. Overstep walk — hind ahead of front. These are larger than average sized in my experience. Found on our back step after a skiff of snow. Can you spot evidence of long claws on the front foot? They look like miniature bear tracks to me. #wildlife

Mallard tracks. I watched the female mallard as she made these tracks, hopping out of the stream across from me onto a patch of freshly fallen snow. #wildlife #tracking #nature

Sap wells. Made by a yellow-bellied sapsucker, one of our migratory woodpeckers. Birch seem to be a favourite, but they make similar sign in many kinds of trees. Other wildlife, like butterflies also use these sap wells. #nature #tracking #alberta

Moose track. Much larger than deer but similar in shape. Heart-shaped and pointy. Flat bottomed. Cleaves can splay and dewclaws may register, making the overall track seem much larger. #wildlife #nature #moose #alberta #tracks #moosetracks

Red squirrel cache of pine cones. Red squirrels keep the bulk of their winter stores in a central location, but also tend smaller caches at scattered locations in their territory — not putting all of their cones in one basket so to speak. #wildlife #squirrels

Mountain goat tracks! The large front track situated ahead of the smaller hind in this presentation shows the classic square shape and frequent splay. Tips of the toes are round. #mountaingoat #goat #wildlife #nature #alberta

Discussing these black bear claw marks up an aspen tree with Track & Sign Certification participants. @moskowitz_david and @raisedbyfieldguides @fierabiological #wildlife #tracking #alberta #conservation #fieldskills

River otter. #riverotter #wildlife #tracking #athabascariver #alberta #nature

Comparison of #bobcat #tracks vs #coyote tracks. Note the symmetry of the coyote track vs asymmetry of the bobcat, and, or, the alignment of the lead two toes with one another — toe 3 on #cats is notably further forward than toe 4, where on #canids, toes 3 & 4 are even.

Eagle tacks along the #reddeer #river in #Alberta. #makingnaturematter – at Edmonton, Alberta

Beautiful #stripedskunk #tracks. – at Edmonton, Alberta

A mouse has been house-sitting for a red-winged blackbird, leaving little clues to tell the story. #wildlife #mouse #birds #nature #nest #wetland – at Edmonton, Alberta

Wolf and a cougar track in the same frame. #animaltracks #wildlife #trackandsign #fieldskills #daretocompare

Amazing great blue heron tracks!! #tracks #BirdsOfTwitter #wildlife #yeg #alberta #Saskatchewan – at Parkland County, Alberta

Amazing #porcupine tracks. #naturealberta #yegnature #albertawildlife #tracking – at Edmonton, Alberta