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On the right track

Workshop reveals wildlife, what clues animals leave behind

Imagine taking a walk and being able to tell exactly what animals have done before you. What they ate, where they live. To read their story in the surrounding environment like pages from a book.

That’s precisely what John Duwe, program coordinator at Durango Nature Studies Nature Center, set out to teach a small group Saturday, part of his Animal Signs Workshop.

“We’re always passing by things that we’re not in tune with,” Duwe said, “and workshops like these are a great stepping-stone to get people to really look around.”

The Nature Center is on 140 acres of land south of Durango that covers a broad scope of biodiversity: grassy meadows with deer and dotted with flowers; a lush, riparian zone along the Florida River hunted by eagles and owls and home to beaver, muskrat and river otters; and wide desert arroyos with rattlesnakes and horned toads, topped with jagged sandstone cliffs.

Every step of the way along its paths is teeming with life.

Turkey vultures, crow and ravens drifted above as Duwe led the group through the meandering trails.

“Tracking animals gives us an idea of what’s been happening – the night before, or the day before that, or the week,” he said. “None of us go through life without leaving footprints.”

Along the walk, the former ranger from Crater Lake National Park pointed out signs of deer, fox, coyote, bobcat and bear while explaining that identification often is a process of elimination.

“What do we know about this track?” he said, examining bobcat prints. “We know that it’s too small to be a mountain lion. Is it a coyote? Probably not.”

He kneeled down later and studied scat, observing its contents.

In addition to signs of larger creatures were enormous mounds of harvester ants, known for their painful bites. Whiptail lizards darted curiously along the sides of the trails like bashful guests. Plants used for thousands of years grew at every turn.

The piñon and its resin and sap have multiple uses, from a natural glue to salves, its seeds a food source for all kinds of animals, Duwe said. Rice grass, Gamble oaks and chokecherry trees flourished. Sumac, globe mallow, sagebrush – all of the above used by the hands of ancient cultures.

The return of the sun after days of rain baked the arroyos into a fine moon dust, making prints easier to spot. Bear tracks grew in size and number, so well preserved you could note the texture of their skin on the paw.

“I hope people understand that these animals really are here,” Duwe said. “They are used to us, but when we leave, this place is theirs.”

bmathis@durangoherald.com



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