I was down in cumberland county the other day and found this track. I have no idea what this could be it was way to big for a dog. It was huge about 4.5-5 inches long and about 4 wide. Could this be a coyote track? Isn't it too big?
What kind of tracks are these??
- Thread starter dragoncjo
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dragoncjo said:I was down in cumberland county the other day and found this track. I have no idea what this could be it was way to big for a dog. It was huge about 4.5-5 inches long and about 4 wide. Could this be a coyote track? Isn't it too big?
They are canid tracks. Lack of toe splay is real suggestive of coyote, but they are much too large. Best guess? Probably a young (2 yr or less) long-legged, lighter-bodied coursing-type large-breed dog (gt.dane? Scottish deerhound? Irish wolfhound?); the older they get, the more splayed the toes become. Heavier bodied big breeds (mastiffs, mastinos, St. Bernards, Gt Pyrenees and the like) show some degree of appreciable toe-splay even when young. But even for these large breeds, 4.5" to 5" long and 4" wide is REALLY big! Were these accurately measured?
Dave
I would have to agree with Dave that at 4.5" to 5" they are much too large for a pure eastern coyote, however, we know, or there is a strong theory, that the coyotes in this area have interbred with grey wolves somewhere down the line. I have heard reports of wolves being seen, even killed in the barrens. Most likely, a strain of coyote with strong genetic tendicies toward the grey wolf resulting in larger size. Could this be one of those coyotes?
I often see very large canine tracks in very remote areas. Areas too remote to be someones pet. I thought for years that these must be wild dogs but now I am not so certain. Two observations: as Dave mentioned, the toes are consistently close set, second the line of travel seems to be very straight and direct. Most dog tracks I have seen tend to wander from one side of the trail to the other, back and forth, almost random. Still, 5" is huge, and I am not familar with what the coyote populations are like in Cumberland county.
Jeff
I often see very large canine tracks in very remote areas. Areas too remote to be someones pet. I thought for years that these must be wild dogs but now I am not so certain. Two observations: as Dave mentioned, the toes are consistently close set, second the line of travel seems to be very straight and direct. Most dog tracks I have seen tend to wander from one side of the trail to the other, back and forth, almost random. Still, 5" is huge, and I am not familar with what the coyote populations are like in Cumberland county.
Jeff
Is that a heel print in the upper right corner of the photo? If so I would say the tracks are a good deal smaller than 4-5".
Jeff
Jeff
I'm not sure if that is a heel print in the right corner. In fact I'm not sure what that is, I didn't notice it at the time of the photo. When I took the photo I used my hand as a measurement. The print was as wide as my fist so probably closer to 3.5 inches, the length was as long as my fist with my thumb tucked under my pointer finger. I beleive it is either a coyote since there is a population of them down in cumberland and cape may counties(I have seen them at menatico ponds), or some one's dog. However the area seemed to remote and to far from any parking area to be someone's dog(at least two mile walk from the nearest parking area. However, I will be going back down tomorrow to find more tracks, hopefully I can find similar tracks.
Although my adding that they're definatly some sort of canine doesn't add much to the discussion, do you recall vertical lines between one print and the next? As a general rule, coyotes and wolves will perfect-step--leaving more textbook tracks, while domestics usually have a "lazy" walking style and drag their feet slightly.
-Bob
-Bob
Did you notice any car tracks or a person’s footprint close by of the same age as this print? If not that would convince me that this print is from a wild canine. After a fresh snow from the night before I was in the woods around High crossing at sun up and found prints that looked the same as the one in your photo. They looked very similar. I could not find car tracks or a persons tracks in the snow anywhere in the area.
I also spotted a large canine this summer the morning of a kayak trip with Ed. Seeing is believing.
Ron
I also spotted a large canine this summer the morning of a kayak trip with Ed. Seeing is believing.
Ron
Just to clear something up the picture is two seperate pictures of two different tracks that were within the same area about a 10 ft area. There were other tracks but these were the best two. Also I did not notice any human prints around.
Dave you would be referring to Ed's dog Willow. I've seen Willow's tracks and they are enormous. Hopefully Ed will see this thread and reply to Willows actual print size and track pattern.
Jeff
Jeff