Wolf Tracks

In Poland recently we spent many hours tracking mammals. The photo here of a Wolf paw-print in wet mud was taken in the Bieszczady Mountains. Wolf prints are very similar to those of a large domestic dog, which is actually not surprising as the Wolves is itself a large dog! Key things to note are: long toe pads which are well spaced-out and splayed apart and long, pointed, pronounced claw marks. Though not shown here the track-line of a Wolf is also rather narrow, whereas most dogs walk in a more of a zig-zag. Location is also important: this photo was taken in a remote area where there are no pet or stray dogs but where there are packs of wolves.