Instructions
Determine whether rabbits live in your area. Rabbits require a moderate habitat, and therefore almost half of the species lives in North America. Likely areas include meadows, forest, thickets and grasslands. It isn't out of the ordinary to find rabbits in a suburban setting, but an urban/city center habitat is not likely.
Look for rabbit tracks in the snow or dirty and sandy areas. A rabbit's back paws and front paws exhibit different characteristics due to their varying functionality varies.
Begin by distinguishing back feet from front feet. If you cannot do this based on general shape alone, you can look for a small mound of dirt or snow pushed upwards and backwards by the hind feet. This is created by the pushing motion of the animal propelling itself forward. Since rabbits' mobility is through the hindquarters, only the hind feet have this distinguishing characteristic.
Check whether there are markings from four toes above the pad. The pad is an oval shape. If this is the rear foot, claw marks above each of the toes aren't usually present, or are very small, as a rabbit does not often move with its claws extended. The rear feet also tend to look elongated, as if the rabbit dragged its feet a bit before landing. This is again due to locomotion.
Identify the tracks through the front feet. These also have 4 toes above an oval or semi-circular pad. Toes are circular in shape and don't display much a of a claw mark, if any.
Use the overall data available in your environment to identify the rabbit's tracks. Consider, for example, how a rabbit moves. Its hopping pattern result in rear tracks showing up in front of, instead of behind, front tracks. Also, look for other signs, such as rabbit scat or vegetable/fencing damage.
How to Identify Rabbit Tracks
Whether nature-watching in your own backyard, or tracking in the forest, rabbit tracks are easy to identify. Like most animals, they have a unique set of characteristics based on anatomy and locomotion. Use these simple clues to figure out if your visitor is a rabbit or some other small mammal. Read on to learn more.