In the Footsteps of Giants

When our trackers head out on foot, they are constantly looking on the ground for signs, listening to their surroundings and literally sniffing the air to make sure they know what could potentially be around. Tracking is not just a job, it is a life skill, sadly one that is on the decline.

Tracking is an age-old practice which helped both indigenous bush dwellers and hunters to find animals, using spoor and droppings. Today, tracking is sadly a dying art, and the skill of tracking is slowly falling away. However, there are still a few highly qualified trackers passing on their expertise and teaching a new generation how to track.

We asked Jack, one of our Master Trackers (Scotch being the other), to explain the basics on the how to track an animal. He also explained how he was able to share some interesting facts and characteristic traits of the animal from some elephant tracks which he identified on a recent walk with his guests. It is truly incredible to see what you can ascertain about an animal just from its footprints.

1. Locate an animal track
2. Determine the age of the track
3. Determine the pace at which the animal is moving
4. Try and look for other specific signs relevant to the animal’s behavior

Finding elephant tracks and identifying them is not exactly difficult, but it is more about the detail you can tell about the animals from their tracks that makes it really fascinating.

• The tracks were over 50 cm in size which meant it was a fully grown elephant.
• There was only one set of tracks, so it was more than likely a lone bull, however there was no sign of secretions on the ground, so he could safely assume that this bull was not in musth.
• The round front foot and the back oval foot were placed almost exactly on top of one another which indicated that this animal was moving at a very slow pace.
• He could see all the cracks on the underneath of the sole, so this meant that the track was still very fresh.
• The smooth heel of the track indicated the direction the animal was moving in.

Unfortunately, he did not follow up on these tracks and so did not find the elephant, but for the guests who were out walking with him it was incredible to learn so much from the tracks alone.

Tracking is just one of the few things that walking allows guests to take the time to observe and engage with, it is a totally new and amazing experience and  a wonderful way of seeing the African environment, learning so much about the smaller things that often are missed on Big Five game drives.