This beautifully illustrated field guide enables you to easily identify the tracks and signs left by a wide variety of mammal and bird species found in Britain and Europe, covering behaviors ranging from hunting, foraging, and feeding to courtship, breeding, and nesting. Introductory chapters offer detailed drawings of footprints and tracks of large and small mammals, which are followed by sections on mammal scat, bird droppings, and the feeding signs of animals on food sources such as nuts, cones, and rose hips. The book then describes specific mammal species, providing information on size, distribution, behavior, habitat, and similar species, as well as more specific detail on tracks and scat. Distribution maps are also included.
This indispensable field guide covers 175 species of mammals and birds, and features a wealth of stunning color photos and artwork throughout.
- Helps you easily identify the tracks and signs of a variety of mammals and birds
- Covers 175 species
- Illustrated throughout with photos, drawings, and artwork
- Includes informative descriptions of mammal species along with distribution maps
"If anyone has a particular interest in learning how to track animals they should buy this book. If on the other hand they are someone who likes to understand the countryside and delve below the surface more than a little, this book will help them to do just that in a handy-sized, nonscientific, and highly readable guide."—Phil Slade, Another Bird Blog
"[B]y far the best book on the subject I've ever seen . . . beautifully illustrated."—Dick Warner, Irish Examiner
"[Focuses] on helping you identify the signs species leave behind, and these are especially useful for tough-to-tell-apart, cryptic, or nocturnal species."—Kate Jones, New Scientist
"[C]oncise and punchy . . . [Olsen] manages to pack an awful lot into these pages, and the result is as thorough a survey of European tracks and signs as you could wish for in a book that's still small and light enough for you to consider taking out into the field. . . . [The book makes] lavish use of colour photos, and there's a pleasingly equal weight given to different species, and to the different aspects of the subject being dealt with."—Matt Merritt, Birdwatching Magazine
"I cannot praise Tracks and Signs highly enough. It is not only the finest guide to tracking I've ever held in my hands, it is one of the most attractive and informative books on natural history I've ever seen. This guide will prove invaluable to those who already take an interest in tracking and wish to gain more experience. It is also an important tool to promote the field art of tracking in Europe, a region where tracking as a zoological method can use all the support it can get. I also wish to emphasize that this is not only a book for European (and British) naturalists. I definitely recommend it to naturalists in North America and East Asia as well. Yes, it is that good."—Jochen Roeder, 10,000 Birds
"[T]his is a lovely book to dip into and learn something new each time. It may not work as a conventional 'in the field guide' but will be invaluable to identify tracks and signs from photographs at home. The drawings and photographs are excellent throughout and the text is clear and concise. I would recommend this book to anyone with an active interest in nature."—Mike King, Gloster Birder
"[A] great field guide to take out with you on country walks, as well as to use for study at home. . . . [A] very attractive book with detailed information and wonderful photography. The layout is clear and easy to follow and there's a wealth of information in there."—Kate Bradbury, English Garden
"A lavishly illustrated book, packed with colour photographs. . . . [T]his book is the start of many possible wildlife adventures and really gets the adrenalin flowing!"—Biggest Twitch
"[A]n excellent book which has rekindled my interest in tracking down more mammals and looking more carefully for the signs of birds. This book is certainly highly recommended. . . . [T]his book will be on the packing list for all our tours in future."—Biggest Twitch
"[I]t's a fascinating, high-quality, good value and very informative book that I'd happily recommend to anyone with an interest in the subject, and I'm looking forward to test-driving it in the North Yorkshire forests this winter."—Mark James Pearson, Birding Frontiers
"Brown et al. will doubtless already be known to many as a reliable guide to the tracks and signs of birds. Those wishing to extend their knowledge of the subject to include mammals should certainly examine a copy of Olsen."—M.G.W., IBIS
"This excellent guide should enable the observer to easily identify the tracks and signs left by a wide variety of our native birds and mammals. I must emphasize the high quality of the outstanding colour photographs."—Bryan Sage, Country-Side
"For me one of the great strengths of this book is that reading it—even just browsing through it—has heighten my awareness of what is around me. I always kept an eye out for tracks and signs—but since spending a bit of time with this book I find myself noticing much more—and referring back to it often when I've discovered something new to narrow down the options."—Calvin Jones, Ireland's Wildlife
"This is a very well-produced, abundantly illustrated guide to the tracks and signs of 175 species of European mammals and birds, bound in a field-friendly, flexible cover. . . . [T]here is much to enjoy here, from the new illustrations to the excellent photographs. A useful addition to the literature on tracks and signs, which adds to the previously available guides."—Curious Naturalist
"[I]f you are looking for something comprehensive for Britain and Europe, this is the book for you. . . . Although advertised as a field guide, this book would be a good addition to a library as a reference book on all tracks and signs."—Helen Ashton, Reference Reviews
"This is an excellent, engaging field guide to the tracks and spoor of the mammals and birds of Northern Europe. The photos and species accounts are outstanding, and I quite like the style of artwork, which is realistic enough to highlight the important characteristics, but stylistic enough to convey the general look of what can be a variable subject."—Roland W. Kays, coauthor of Mammals of North America
