Tracks - 3 Sets

[u/CompetitionAshamed93]

Hello all,

I’m in need of assistance in identifying these tracks.

Location, rural central NC

My neighbor has an old rock pit that sits above a creek that borders our property. I will often ride out and look for tracks/arrow heads/rocks after a good rain. Today, I found these. What are your thoughts?

I have labeled them 1-3 based on where I found them in groups. The last few photos show the area of where they were found.

PS - You may see home equid (horse/mule tracks) in the margins. I normally ride one of my horses out and pony my mule to this area then switch and ride the mule and pony the horse back. I just didn’t want anyone to be alarmed by the random equid tracks if you see them, lol.

Women’s size medium leather glove for reference on size.

Thank you!

[u/hctiBmottoB]

I think the ground being dry vs wet when some of these were left is throwing me off a bit, but I’m going to give it a go - I think 1 and 3 are domestic dogs due to the size and lack of negative space between the pads. Coyote are usually more narrow with more negative space and the shape of the large pad is a bit different. 2 is a total guess but possibly bobcat due to the size, lack of claws, and round toes.

[u/morgan_lowtech → u/hctiBmottoB]

This is my read as well. For #1 those splayed claws are also a hint towards dog for me as Coyotes tend to be sorta kinda spade/teardrop shaped.

[u/CompetitionAshamed93 → u/hctiBmottoB]

Thank you!

This Cecil/red clay makes things tricky. It is very impressionable when wet but dries in weird stages.

I was thinking coyote/dog on 1 & 3. We rarely see stray dogs around here but it’s definitely a possibility.

For 2, I was stumped. I thought it was a cat of some sort. At first, I thought domesticated house cat but they seem a little big for that. They go right up to the base of the rock wall and then “disappear”. It looks like it made a 6-7’ vertical jump to the top of the wall but I couldn’t find any tracks on the top side.

[u/morgan_lowtech → u/CompetitionAshamed93]

The shape of the heel pad + toes is definitely giving cat to me. In this case, I actually think the presence of the slight claw impressions make the tracks lean more towards bobcat vs. domestic cat for me.

[u/hctiBmottoB → u/CompetitionAshamed93]

I’m no expert but have spent a lot of time in the woods in NC and that is my best guess!

[u/Chimp_Burrito]

Is it possible the tracks you attributed to #1 are actually from different animals? Some look more like coyote and some look more like domestic dog to me. For example, the compact stacking of the digits seen in the lower left of the first photo result in an oval print and look very much like typical coyote. I don’t see that pattern in the third, fourth and fifth photos. Those prints have the first and fourth digits splayed out to the sides like I’ve seen from domestic dogs. I’m not an expert but that’s where my mind goes given these photos alone.

[u/CompetitionAshamed93 → u/Chimp_Burrito]

It is possible! I definitely see what you are saying. They were in the same general area but the tracks overlapped and went towards the creek and then turned and went the other way.

[u/vrhspock]

The stride is imperfect which indicates domestic dog. The others seem feline in the domestic cat size range unless I missed something. Generally speaking domestic animals show up most of the time.

[u/Mountain-Donkey98]

These are canid tracks. Likely domestic dog or coyote. A tad too big to be fox.