Rating: 
Summary: This book should be the "Bible" of all novice trackers!
Review: Paul Rezendes brings to life and makes possible the intimate experiences of wildlife interaction. This book has allowed me to track such elusive wildlife as black bear, moose, and timberwolves. As a Native American, I was pleased to read and experience the same intimate interactions with nature that my ancestors once experienced. The detailed descriptions of individual tracks and the explanations of the differences between similar tracks has proven a great assistance while on my own expeditions. This book also contains the most important element necessary for successful tracking which most fail to provide - pictures. The impressive photography clearly provides undeniable evidence of Paul Rezendes actual expertise in his field of practice. I highly recommend this book to all trackers - from novice to expert.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent learning source for beginning trackers!
Review: Paul Rezendes not only provides awesome photos of tracks in different types of soil (substrates) and snow but beautiful ones of the animals themselves as well. Included is abundant info about animals' habits which adds to one's knowledge on how and where to look for tracks. A must-have for your shelf on nature.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: The new edition of "Tracking...." is wonderful (although a few of the old, less than useful photos persist). The format is logical and easy to use. The information is clear, and most important it is all accurate. By far the best tracking book around.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent introduction
Review: This book provides an excellent introduction to reading animal tracks. In the first chapter the author explains why we should try to understand the tracks around us in the forest, and what we might see. He then delves into the kinds of observations we need to make, such as trail widths and trail patterns and scat. The rest of the book is divided into chapters by animal family, including chapters for rodents, rabbits, weasels, dogs, cats, bears, and hoofed animals. There is also an extensive bibliography and index. Each chapter is comprised of short articles about the specifics of tracking the individual animals that make up the family covered in the chapter. Rezendes provides a short informative description of the animal with a color photograph. The descriptions cover behavior, range, and diet. Rezendes also includes black and white photos of the animal's feet, both front and back. The next section of the article covers tracks and trail patterns, and it includes illustrations or diagrams, photographs, and typical trail width and stride measurements, as well as a lot of information to help you sort out this critter's tracks from all the others out there. He also includes short sections on signs, such as dens, food caches, kill sites, and scat, also with photographs or illustrations. I purchased this book after moving out into the country because I wanted to identify the critters that visited at night leaving their tracks in the snow around our house. I found Rezendes' approach captivating and easy to understand, even as a beginner. Rezendes explains how tracks can tell us much more than just the identity of an animal- -through a careful study of tracks, you can determine how fast the animal was moving, whether it was browsing, being chased, or chasing another. This book is a highly informative reference; it's also a delightful read on a blustery winter afternoon.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent introduction
Review: This book provides an excellent introduction to reading animal tracks. In the first chapter the author explains why we should try to understand the tracks around us in the forest, and what we might see. He then delves into the kinds of observations we need to make, such as trail widths and trail patterns and scat. The rest of the book is divided into chapters by animal family, including chapters for rodents, rabbits, weasels, dogs, cats, bears, and hoofed animals. There is also an extensive bibliography and index. Each chapter is comprised of short articles about the specifics of tracking the individual animals that make up the family covered in the chapter. Rezendes provides a short informative description of the animal with a color photograph. The descriptions cover behavior, range, and diet. Rezendes also includes black and white photos of the animal's feet, both front and back. The next section of the article covers tracks and trail patterns, and it includes illustrations or diagrams, photographs, and typical trail width and stride measurements, as well as a lot of information to help you sort out this critter's tracks from all the others out there. He also includes short sections on signs, such as dens, food caches, kill sites, and scat, also with photographs or illustrations. I purchased this book after moving out into the country because I wanted to identify the critters that visited at night leaving their tracks in the snow around our house. I found Rezendes' approach captivating and easy to understand, even as a beginner. Rezendes explains how tracks can tell us much more than just the identity of an animal- -through a careful study of tracks, you can determine how fast the animal was moving, whether it was browsing, being chased, or chasing another. This book is a highly informative reference; it's also a delightful read on a blustery winter afternoon.
Rating:
Summary: Best Tracking Book to Be Found
Review: This is a truly magnificent tracking book. The book has no pseudo-spiritual dribble about tracking ants across rocks or pressure points; it is full of useful information, and it is clear that the author is as genuine of an expert naturalist as they get. He shares an incredible wealth of information on how to examine and analyze the wilderness from a microcosmic level. The photography is outstanding and the descriptions of animal signs are excellent. Being a survival instructor, I have read many fine books on tracking animals and observing their signs, but I have never read one that I learned more from than this one.
Rating:
Summary: Can't say enough good about this book
Review: This is just an outstanding book. The author has learned much about tracking animals because he's a wild-life photographer. The part I liked the best was when he distinguishes (and teaches you how to distinguish) between a coyote and a domistic dog print. As I hike quite a bit in an area that has both, I found he was right on the money. A book you will want to keep a long time.
Rating: 
Summary: Can't wait for the next one...
Review: Understanding elusive animals is a bit like being a detective: all you have are the clues they've left behind. As a professional ecologist, I heartily recommend "Tracking and the art of seeing" to anyone interested in the outdoors. Paul (and Paulette!) have created a marvelous contribution to both science and art. I especially appreciate Paul's emphasis on using all of your senses effectively, which is the most difficult skill to master. Sounds like a 5 star review so far, right? Unfortunately, I feel compelled to warn those who live west of the Mississippi that Paul does not discuss some of the West's most noteworthy animals, including mule deer, bighorn sheep (he does discuss Dall sheep), pronghorn, prairie dogs, badgers, and so on. Likewise, Paul does not include domestic cattle, sheep, goats, and horses, although I've discovered that novices can often mistake these for wild ungulates. Nevertheless, "Tracking and the art of seeing" is a wonderful example of what an outdoor reference can be: a source of both information and inspiration. It deserves an honored place on your shelf, or in your pack!
Rating:
Summary: Can't wait for the next one...
Review: Understanding elusive animals is a bit like being a detective: all you have are the clues they've left behind. As a professional ecologist, I heartily recommend "Tracking and the art of seeing" to anyone interested in the outdoors. Paul (and Paulette!) have created a marvelous contribution to both science and art. I especially appreciate Paul's emphasis on using all of your senses effectively, which is the most difficult skill to master. Sounds like a 5 star review so far, right? Unfortunately, I feel compelled to warn those who live west of the Mississippi that Paul does not discuss some of the West's most noteworthy animals, including mule deer, bighorn sheep (he does discuss Dall sheep), pronghorn, prairie dogs, badgers, and so on. Likewise, Paul does not include domestic cattle, sheep, goats, and horses, although I've discovered that novices can often mistake these for wild ungulates. Nevertheless, "Tracking and the art of seeing" is a wonderful example of what an outdoor reference can be: a source of both information and inspiration. It deserves an honored place on your shelf, or in your pack!
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