Tracking Wildlife

August 27, 2025

Learn what to look for when tracking wildlife in the Great British countryside.

Ray Mears has nearly 40 years of tracking experience whether it be criminals, hosting TV shows on Bushcraft and leading expeditions in wildernesses. Now he’s published a new book called Outdoor Tracking Handbook: How to Find Anything in the Wild. The book doesn’t just reveal how we can track wildlife in the British countryside but also has many stories of trackers around the world and how some have used their skills to find humans. .

Tracking wildlife is a great way to spend your daily walks, and here is what to look for in our woodlands.

Deer

You will clearly see the sharp outline of two nails in each footprint. If you look very closely you will see that the inner of these two toes is slightly shorter than the outer toe, enabling you to distinguish left from right. The tracks of sika deer and fallow deer are indistinguishable.

Willow grouse

You’ll find them in forests, bogs and moorlands. In deep snow, willow grouse tracks are immediately detectable as they weave a course through the twig ends of snowed-in birch trees, gathering birch buds for food. They can walk on top of the snow due to their feathery feet, which function as snowshoes.

Fox

Fox prints belong to the dog family and have prints of 5-6cm long and four toes with visible claws. Fox dens, called an earth, usually face south and they have a little rampart in front of them. You might find feeding remains in front.

Badger

A badger’s sett is more complicated and is much less obvious. They’re often tucked away in woodland, usually near a source of water, and you might find elderberries nearby: badgers like to eat them. There’s a curved trench that goes into the hole and very often you’ll find bedding material — dry leaves and grasses — scattered around outside. Badgers like to change their bedding often.

Hare

Hares, which live in farmland and grasslands, have large, powerful rear legs and smaller, efficient front feet that stabilise their movement. At full speed their front feet land one after the other while their rear feet reach forward to land in synchrony for a power-filled kick to drive them forwards. Their trail shows the hind feet landing in front of the fore feet.

Squirrel

Squirrels have different numbers of toes on their fore and hind feet. They are also bounders but place their front feet in synchrony to maintain stability. Their bound is like that of a rabbit but their trick for escape is their superb ability to climb and leap between trees. A squirrels’ nest, called a dray, looks like an oversized football in the branches of a tree.

Tracks may well lead you to the habitat of some animals which you should not disturb nor venture to close to deer especially during the birthing season (June-August). They can become quite aggressive.

If you are interested in tracking, find out which are the Best Woodlands and Forests.