This beginner course is a great place to start for those looking to improve their ability to identify a range of wildlife tracks and signs.
You will learn skills to confidently identify a variety of mammal and bird activity including the physical appearance and ID features of tracks, feeding signs, homes, and droppings. You will also have plenty of time to explore the outdoors to put your newfound knowledge into practice, leaving you with a solid introduction to the world of tracking.
Wildlife tracking is an ancient science and art – one that humans once relied upon for survival. Tracking involves a range of skills such as identifying the animal that left the clue, working out what it was doing and when, and even finding the animal itself. Tracking is a great way to hone our ability to observe details around us and to build our knowledge of wildlife, specifically their presence, movements and feeding ecology. This place-based training course from the Field Studies Council includes a balance of classroom-led and outdoor learning opportunities focusing on building introductory knowledge of wildlife tracks and signs and the identification/ understanding of some examples of these.
Tutor: Sarah Towle
With a mixed background in conservation, animal behaviour and even wildlife art, Sarah is a qualified teacher in further and higher education and has taught animal and outdoor based learning to wide and varied audiences from primary school through to university. Sarah’s passion for the natural world is lifelong with a specialist interest in UK wildlife and conservation, and can often be found walking the moors and coastland of North Wales with her two collies and a pocket full of feathers, bones or interesting rocks. Sarah has spent the last 12 years developing a wide skill set to deliver fun and engaging learning experiences that are accessible to all ages and abilities.
