How to Spot Deer Tracks

If you want to know if deer are playing in your back yard, or you are spending a day hiking and want to see deer, there are things you can look for to help you to spot their tracks. Once you have found signs of deer being in the area tracking the deer should be easy to do.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Look on soft ground such as mud, sand or snow for heart shaped prints. Tracks made by deer hooves are easy to spot because they are heart shaped. The pointed end of the heart is pointing in the direction that the deer is traveling.

2. Follow trails made by the deer tracks and you might get lucky and see the deer making them. Deer tend to travel on the same narrow paths when seeking food, water and bedding.

3. Keep an eye open for "buck rubs" on the trees. This is an area where the bark has been removed from the tree usually one to two feet off the ground. Bucks will do this to mark their territory so that other male deer know that the area is already taken.

4. Check broken twigs and plants in the area to see if they are rough cut and torn. Deer do not have top teeth in the front so they eat by using their back teeth to tear their food.

5. Watch for signs of deer beds. This is areas where plants are broken and trampled to make a bed. It will usually be surrounded by tall plants or shrubs for protection.

6. Be on the alert for deer dung. Deer dung is small pellets around the size and shape of peanut M&Ms. Usually you will spot the dung in piles of around sixty to seventy pellets.