The Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority hosted an interactive session at the Painswick branch of the Barrie Public Library on Saturday that saw children learning about how to identify animal footprints in the wild, along with other things left behind by wildlife such as their scat and browse marks on trees and other plants.
There was a table with animal tracks, a table with animal scat, and they discussed different animals and if they are sleeping or if they are hibernating at this time of year, and if they are active during the wintertime, what you would actually see.
A hands-on table featured browse, which are different plants that have been chewed on by deer or rabbits, and ball-galls, which are signs of insects that you would even see in the winter, as larvae try to hibernate through the winter.
Naomi Saunders, manager of the Environmental Education Program at the Tiffin Centre, walked the kids through the activities that were on offer. “We are here to help children and their families learn about the signs of wildlife, the animals that live around us, but we don’t often get to see them, but in wintertime we can see signs of wildlife and what they leave behind.”
The most popular activity with the kids is making their own tracks, with the rubber models that are available, pushed into the snow making a footprint.
“While sharing with the kids what they can find, often times what we’ll hear is ‘oh, I have seen that before,’ so the more connections people can make, by recognizing things and knowing what they are, the more they will feel at home with nature, so any little tidbit they can take with them and share with somebody else, they are making better connections with the land,” said Saunders.
These little signs are everywhere, and you just have to begin to look for them.
On a personal level, Saunders said that she enjoys being outside this time of year. “I love getting out on the land and taking pictures and identifying things for myself, and I use citizen science apps like Seek or iNaturalist. You can take pictures of tracks and they might let you know what it is if you don’t know, or confirm what you might think it is,” she said.
Sometimes one can be quite surprised with what they may find while out and about in the wild.
“Last winter we saw fisher tracks at the Tiffin Centre. They are elusive and their range is about 100 km, which is pretty big. They’re also pretty ferocious, so it’s nice to find something like that, that you don’t normally get to see, and I’ve only ever seen them once before. I’ve also seen (their tracks) out at the Minesing wetlands when we have had snowshoe hikes out there.”
Tracking tracks can be a great reason to get out and get walking in the wintertime. Keep your head down and eyes peeled. You never know what you might find.
