Practical Nature Study
By Floyd Bralliar
Perhaps no one thing, unless it be the ability to recognize the varied species of plants he sees, adds so much to the pleasure of a walk in the open fields as a knowledge that enables one to learn what inhabits the fields and woods by the tracks to be seen on every hand. Perhaps many or most of my readers possess that ability, but for the benefit of those who do not, and desire to do so, I make these suggestions. Each animal, from his nature and the structure of his body no less than from the shape of his foot, possesses characteristics that serve to identify his trail to any but the most casual observers. To learn these characteristics not only brings a pleasure that is its own reward, but leads to the student necessarily learning much of natural history that he would probably never learn otherwise. To do this involves both time and careful effort. The short interval between this and warm weather offers, perhaps, the best opportunity of the entire year of making a successful beginning, for now at an interval of a few days light “tracking” snow and soft mud will follow each other. It is in these that the doings of the wild folk are carefully recorded without being complexified by the repeated records of weeks, as is the case both in midwinter and in summer. It is the habit of almost all wild animals, whose very existence depends on their stealth, to follow along creeks or “draws,” or, at least, hillsides where their silhouette will not stand out against the sky-line. So the morning after a light snow has fallen, let the would-be student visit the places most frequented by these “folk of the forest,” note-book and pencil in hand, and carefully record what he finds. He should not only write down the record of the tracks he recognizes, but also the number and location of those he does not recognize. This record will include as accurate a drawing as he is able to make, both of an individual track of the front and the hind foot and of the trail. The size of tracks must also be noted; for often the species are distinguished by this alone. If time permits, let him follow these trails, and note what the animal has done, and where he has gone. This only leads him to observe carefully the trail, but often serves as a clue to the animal's identity. When this is done, let him inquire of those who know the identity of all unrecognized tracks. In every neighborhood there will be those who know. Benefits: it makes one a keen and close observer. It takes one to nature to study nature, and he thus acquires learning at first hand. It leads to a love of the natural instead of the artificial. It teaches one of the lives of God's creatures who roam in the darkness, and for whom he provides.