Fisher, Marten or Weasel?

PineCone

PineCone

New member
Here are some tracks from my coyote hunt on Tuesday.
012_13A.jpg

013_12A.jpg

015_10A.jpg

042_19A.jpg

040_21A.jpg

I set up and called with my back to the tree in the middle. On my way out of the woods a few hours later I found his tracks going right through my stand. He came up the horizontal log right behind where I would have been sitting. That would have been exiting. He exited the photo left of center at bottom. This is the way my hunts work. I leave, animal shows up.
Hunting Seasons in NH
Fisher: Dec 1 to Jan.31
Marten: Threatened species
Weasel: No closed season
Marten Tracks
Mysterious Marten
NH Weasels
Wildlife Tracks
Any Opinions?PC
 
A martens heal tracks are noticably larger than the front and all are more oval shaped. They are about 2" in length with the toe prints forming an inverted U shape, judging by the call size and the toe pattern I don't believe it to be a marten, too big. A fisher on the other hand has a track about 3" across and a toe pattern that is more straight across, with both rear and front tracks being about the same size. Also the first photo top track has a pad similar to a fisher and the third photo middle set track on the right also shows this pad. A weasel is out it only has 4 toe pattern across the top. But I could be wrong, but maybe a fisher.
 
Joe, I have never seen a coon track, none here, have to get out of the mind set of where I am, and where the tracks are. But looked it up and I tend to agree with you it may be a coon.
 
I agree the bottom two photos look like bobcat, but the top three look like coon to me. Why are they mixed up? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
The top pics are consistant with coon.

Both because of the large pad on the hind track and becasue of the 2 x 2 track pattern.

Coon tracks:

raccooon.jpg


Hind:

raccooninsandhind.jpg
 
Tikaani, if I saw a pic of a wolverine track hard to say what I would think too. You would spot it a mile away. Interesting pics Pine Cone.
 
Did not pay much attention to the bottom photos, it was late last night and was fixated on the top three. Thanks, Joe and Yellowhammer for the info, always looking and learning.
John
 
The top three photos ARE a different set of tracks. They were about a hundred feet from where I have seen good fisher (I think) tracks a few weeks ago. Those were bigger and more spaced. I have made the mistake (many times) of assuming something because of what I have seen there in the recent past.
mainekiller and Joetrapper, you guys amaze me /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowingsmilie.gif because "bobcat" was my first thought on the tracks through my stand. As I came back to the stand I saw the tracks leading all over and around stumps and roots and things sort of reminding me of a cat tip-toe-ing around. Then when I saw the roundness and the pads of the track in the picture I immediately thought "Cat". I then talked myself out of it because I traced them back to the log and then in the direction, and within fifty feet, of the fisher tracks of a few weeks ago.
As far as Coon being the other tracks, I'll buy that. The toes do look finger-like in the photos, but they did look more ball-like in real if I remember correctly.
You guys have opened my eyes big time. I need to be more observant, maybe take some notes and measurements and definitely better photos.
Thanks a million.PC
 
There is a great tracking site called bear-tracker.com
There are many track types there and lots of advice for tracking.

Here is a nice track picture I got a couple of weeks ago.

008_5ABobcrop-noQ.jpg
 
I got lucky when I found these tracks. He had stood still long enough to melt the snow so I could get a very clear picture. The melted out area in the picture contains scat. There are several different aged scat in the area. It is a cool spot. I have only gotten one Bobcat picture there but I didn't have the camera aimed just right. I will try there again soon.
 
I have a track question similar to these. Mike? Anybody?

I didn't have a camera with me the other day when I saw a track I can't identify. It was on lightly crusted snow and showed five toes, but round rather than long like a raccoon. The tracks were about the size of an average raccoon's, and the odd part is that they were perfectly paired, side by side so that they appeared as a long line of paired ovals in the snow.

The critter was stepping his front tracks exactly side by side, then putting his slightly longer hind foot exactly on the front print on each side. He could do that by slow front & back "hopping" or by stepping one front foot ahead, putting the other beside it, then stepping each hind foot into the track ahead. Odd gait.

I'm remembering a short stride, hindsight guesstimate of eight or little more inches, front of track to front of next track, with two or three inches between them.

Fair number of rabbits in the area but this didn't have the long hind foot of a slow hopping rabbit, and there were rabbit samples nearby. Right along the 49th parrallel, BC WA border, coastal mountain valley. Fresh bobcat track nearby, quite different.

Any ideas? If they were paired side by side, one of the top photos of tracks here looks similar at least in the pad and toe formation, but the stride and paired foot gait is totally different. Also, no trace of dragging tail or anything in the snow.

Thanks,
OK
 
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