TRACKS: Who dunnit?

[Prawnster]

Are cats messy eaters? I mean do they leave a lot of saliva on a kill compared to a fox or a dog?
Could it be scavenging foxes have 'cleaned' the kill and removed saliva from the original predator?
I can't see how a fix can bring a deer down so it was either a) already dead, b) foxes are hunting in packs, or c) something else killed it.


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[Prawnster]

Fox not fix! Damn you autocorrect!!


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[blacktimberwolf]

Are cats messy eaters? I mean do they leave a lot of saliva on a kill compared to a fox or a dog?
Could it be scavenging foxes have 'cleaned' the kill and removed saliva from the original predator?

Big cats would leave as much DNA as any other predator as chewing activates the salivary glands & well as the licking motion that felines have before biting of pieces of meat..............it's unlikely that another animal such as a fox would wipe away ALL of another"s saliva on a carcass......
There's no doubt that a fox or 2 invited themselves to the banquette after. the deed was done though


There are probably other signs around such as tracks,scent marks, fur & scats,......I suppose we would be told they were dog !

 

[Bushwhacker]

There's been a large consumption of meat so certainly not one fox and it would be nice to see how the ribs have been bitten through and whether they are crushed/gnawed or sheared.

 

[blacktimberwolf]

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On enlarging the first photo it looks to me like the ribs have been cleanly cut.....

 

[Tjurved]

Vole?

Hare?

Close-up on same track

 

[woodstock]

How many tracks did you find its big for scottish wildcat and lynx something does'nt look right with that first print

 

[benp1]

I've just discovered this thread. Interesting read, have you been up to that area recently JD?

 

[JonathanD]

I was up there on Tuesday, but only passed through on the way home. If you've read my thread started in the Flora and Fauna section on juvenile adders, the last pic of the Fallow deer was taken there. I've not seen any unidentified tracks or anything weird, but I've not been looking.

 

[BushrangerCZ]

yep, should be hare...

 

[BushrangerCZ]

Who knows authors of these signatures in the snow?
Habitat: Central europe, highland covered by wooded hills (conifers), shallow streams and marshes in walleys
PS: measure tape is in centimeters

 

[Robson Valley]

Top and middle: Mustelidae (Weasel Family of species)
Bottom: Ungulata (deer of some kind)

 

[BushrangerCZ]

All these creatures live in UK... Forest of Dean is definately full of them. Any more tips?

 

[petrochemicals]

Bush ranger the middle and bottom I think are not generally accepted as uk spieces, I think it's mink and the other of the porcine family, maybe the seasonal visitor, sus volatilis, or something like that.

the top one looks like cat or bear or something, they are rather big though for other uk spieces.

 

[Robson Valley]

Top one is an old track, everything rounded off. Middle a couple of days fresher.
Far too big for mink. My gut reaction was Marten or Fisher is even bigger.
Both circumpolar in mixed/coniferous forests. I saw my very first Fisher Oct/14.
Bears hibernate, I never see their tracks in the snow. Cat prints are round.
So far, so good = nobody reporting cougar tracks in the village this winter.

Bottom is a very deep print with strikes from the rear toes.

 

[petrochemicals]

Top one is an old track, everything rounded off. Middle a couple of days fresher.
Far too big for mink. My gut reaction was Marten or Fisher is even bigger.
Both circumpolar in mixed/coniferous forests. I saw my very first Fisher Oct/14.
Bears hibernate, I never see their tracks in the snow. Cat prints are round.
So far, so good = nobody reporting cougar tracks in the village this winter.

Bottom is a very deep print with strikes from the rear toes.

I never really new mink where so tiny, I think the British weasel family speices should be able to eradicate them given a chance.

the reason for the cat thing is that they're rounded to flat and not pointed, but like you say they're old. bears would be a touch bigger though.

 

[Askel]

What could havet done these? They're about 7-8 cm from heel to toe. Found in southern Sweden. I'm thinking fox or lynx, or am I off?

 

[BushrangerCZ]

not lynx, probably dog...

 

[BushrangerCZ]

for three pictures I posted above earlier...
- First one is badger - round print, bear-like but small, strong claws, no other animal is like that
- second one is otter, only one which was a bit tricky (beaver, otter and muskrat tracks can sometimes be hard to tell apart)
- third is wild boar, no magic here - roe deer, red deer, fallow deer, all of these got dewclaws higher up, so they are not visible in the tracks. Boar got them low so they are very distinctive. Easy!

 

[BushrangerCZ]

easy one, typical animal of fields and forests... notice "Y" formation of tracks: