Synopses & Reviews
Jim Lowery is among North America's leading tracking experts. In this book he distills his remarkable expertise, gained over decades of intensive research and practical field experience, into a comprehensive field guide to tracking North American mammals. Fully illustrated with hundreds of drawings and high-resolution photographs,
The Tracker's Field Guide sets a new standard for tracking books.
Review
“Jim’s book represents a valuable addition to tracking literature. It is a wealth of natural history information gained from long hours observing animals in the field. For those wishing to expand their knowledge of mammals in the wild, Jim's book warrants long and careful study.”
—James C. Halfpenny, PhD, president of A Naturalist’s World
“Jim Lowery has written a superb field guide based on a lifetime of tracking experience and thousands of hours instructing students in the art and science of this ancient skill. The information he presents is highly insightful and guaranteed to enrich your own journey in tracking.
—Bill Marple, director of tracking at Tom Brown Jr’s Tracker School and founder of Earth Voices
“The Tracker’s Field Guide is a truly helpful work of art! Gratitude to Jim Lowery for his user friendly and inviting presentation of the complex and magical world of tracking and connecting to the natural world.”
—Jon Young, author of What the Robin Knows and founder of the 8 Shields Institute
“ His formula … is a combination of good photographs, concise drawings and illustrations, wreathed with prose that’s uncompromisingly clear and utterly unaffected. Perusing this book produces an uncanny feel that you stand beside someone on a trail, who is pointing at tracks with a twig and making laconic observations.”
—San Francisco Chronicle
“[T]his practical guide includes everything trackers need to make sense of signs and understand an animal’s life story.”
—Book News
“Based on real, scientific field experience, this book is an invaluable resource for anyone studying animal tracking around the world.”
—Chris Chisholm, The Wolf Camp and Wolf College
Synopsis
The best field guide ever published on animal tracking in the United States.
About the Author
Jim Lowery has taught hundreds of beginning and advanced tracking workshops over the past eighteen years. His school, Earth Skills, located in Frazier Park, California, offers courses and special training in tracking and survival.
Table of Contents
Contents
Acknowledgments vii
1: Into the Animals World 1
2: Clear Print Identification 4
3: Track Pattern Basics 9
4: Soil Movement and Track Identification 14
5: Track Pattern Interpretation 16
6: Using Pressure Releases for Interpretation 26
7: Mammal Pages 30
Cats 33
Bobcat 34
Domestic Cat 42
Mountain Lion 46
Dogs 55
Coyote 56
Domestic Dog 64
Gray Fox 68
Gray Wolf 76
Kit Fox 82
Red Fox 90
Rabbits and Hares 99
Black-Tailed Jackrabbit 100
Cottontail 108
Snowshoe Hare 116
White-Tailed Jackrabbit 122
Rodents 127
Antelope Squirrel 128
Beaver 132
Chipmunk 140
Fox Squirrel 148
Gray Squirrel 154
Ground Squirrel 162
Kangaroo Rat 170
Marmot/Woodchuck 178
Mice 184
Peromyscus Mice (Peromyscus Genus) 187
Harvest Mice (Reithrodontomys Genus) 188
Grasshopper Mice (Onychomys Genus) 189
Pocket Mice (Chaetodipus and Perognathus Genus) 190
Muskrat 192
Pocket Gopher 198
Porcupine 202
Red Squirrel 210
Vole 216
Woodrat 220
Weasels 229
Badger 230
Fisher 238
Marten 242
Mink 250
River Otter 256
Spotted Skunk 262
Striped Skunk 270
Weasel 278
Raccoons, Opossums, and Bears 287
Raccoon 288
Ringtail 296
Opossum 304
Black Bear 310
Grizzly Bear 318
Insectivore 323
Shrew 324
Ungulates 327
Bighorn Sheep 328
Burro 336
Domestic Cow 338
Elk 340
Feral Pig 348
Llama 350
Moose 352
Mule Deer/Black-Tailed Deer 356
Pronghorn 364
White-Tailed Deer 370
Appendix A: Mammal List 377
Appendix B: Recommended Reading 380
Appendix C: Visualizing Home-Range Sizes 396
Appendix D: Resources 398
Glossary 399
Index 402
About the Author 408