Scavenger Hunt: In A Rut

Welcome to the Minnesota Wildlife Tracking Project's newest challenge, the Scavenger Hunt. The purpose of the Scavenger Hunt is to get us out in the field searching for specific tracks & sign. It's one thing to identify a track or sign we encounter, but we need a deeper understanding of animal behavior to know where to look for them in the first place. The Scavenger Hunt is designed to help us build this deeper understanding, deepen our connection with our local landscapes, and give us an opportunity to share the journey.

Each month, I will post a short list of tracks and sign to seek out and document on our club's iNaturalist project. In keeping with the season, this month's scavenger hunt focuses on deer sign during the rut.

For the coming month, I invite you to seek out and document as many of the following as you can:

• 1. Deer Scat

  2. Buck Rub

  3. Deer Scrape

For an additional challenge, look for fresh sign:

• 1. a deer scat that is still damp with mucous

  2. a buck rub with curls of bark that have not dried out

  3. a deer scrape with a patch of soil still damp with urine

For each sign, take a photo and post it to the Minnesota Wildlife Tracking Project: Scavenger Hunt iNaturalist project. I will share a selection of the photos when I post next month's Scavenger Hunt.

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