September 10-11, 2022
Track & Sign Evaluation
Back (L to R): Whitney Sansom, Sandy Reed, Allison Van Dyk Zaccardi, Clinton Dexter-Nienhaus, Mike Holtz, Troy Ellefson
Front (L to R): Jason Askins, Evaluator Matt Nelson, Bill Kass, Eric Vehe
Last weekend, the Minnesota Wildlife Tracking Project hosted Cybertracker Evaluator Matt Nelson for a Track & Sign Identification Standard Evaluation in the Twin Cities Metro.
Over two days, an intrepid group of ten participants answered 57 questions about tracks, feeding sign, scat, and other behaviors written on the landscape by the more-than-human inhabitants of this land.
Questions on this evaluation asked participants to identify tracks, feeding sign, scat, and behavioral interpretations across multiple mammal, bird, reptile, and insect species.
In the end, every participant scored high enough to receive certification under the Cybertracker Conservation system. That's incredible!
We extend heartfelt congratulations to each participant for their hard work and preparation for this wide-ranging evaluation:
Level I: John Bauhs
Level II: Jason Askins, Troy Ellefson, Mike Holtz, Clinton Dexter-Nienhaus, Whitney Sansom, Allison Zaccardi
Level III: Eric Vehe, Sandy Reed, and Bill Kass
We are grateful to Matt for bringing our community together, sharing his deep experience, and helping us see ever more interconnected stories in our tracking "backyard."
And, we are grateful for our tracking club community of nine years: where we gather monthly to learn from the beings on the land and one another, share curiosity, and grow together in our understanding and connection.
Want to learn more? Join us at our next monthly Tracking Club. Click here for our Events Calendar.
Above: All ten participants gather around as Matt explains a challenging question.
Upper Left: Whitney and Sandy work through track questions in thick mud.
Lower Left: Eric and Mike contemplate hypotheses to explain how mud was deposited onto a fallen tree.
Who?
Who? What happened?
Who made those white streaks?
Who's responsible for this?
Above: Popsicle sticks point out tracks and questions for participants to engage. The left stick asks, "Who? Which foot?" The right, "Who?"
Upper Left: Who left this track?
Lower Left: Who made this discoloration or mark in this burdock leaf?