The dew-claws, being much thicker and blunter in the bull than in the cow, are a certain distinctive feature, but their imprint can be seen only in mud or snow, and there the other more prominent signs of the bull track are, as a rule, visible also and will be found more reliable.
The young bull often oversteps the forefoot track with the hind foot; therefore in case the tracks do not register it is necessary to examine the two individual tracks of one side. If the bigger track is in front, an old bull made it, and if the reverse is the case, the animal is not worth following, because it is a young one.
Like all members of the deer tribes, the elk bull cleanses his horns of the velvet on trees, and, in addition to pawing the ground with the hoofs, he often belabors it with his horns in his anger with a rival.
Some consider the distance between the individual tracks in the attempt to determine the size and other points of the elk, and if the animal has been seen, this is well, but if there is only the trail to decide by, it appears to be a far-fetched "sign," because the foundation, a knowledge of the speed, is lacking.
THE MOOSE
THE favorite rendezvous, in summer or winter range, of any other member of the deer tribes may be ascertained by the observant trailer, and the animal found within a given area with moderate certainty, but not so our most gigantic game, the moose; he is far too much of a traveler. True, he too has his range, but its limits are so extended that he may return to the same place but once within a month or two. Here to-day and elsewhere to-morrow seems to be his rule.
Yet, in spite of the moose's habits, the tracker may bag him in any given locality by ascertaining in what umbrageous thicket or on what wooded hillside the moose prefers to stay during his visits, that is, if the hunter does not wish to run him down by sheer endurance, which would take him over deep, crusted snow, cost about a week's hard work, and furnish poor sport.
On account of its extraordinary size, it is out of the question that the track of a bull moose should be mistaken for that of another deer; rather it might be taken for that of a big ox, except the track of the latter is always rounder and the entire hoof-form different. Where any doubt exists, a close examination will invariably dispel it. In forming a conclusion about a moose track the chief aim is always to decide if it was made by a bull or cow. The hoof of the bull is bulkier than that of the cow, and should therefore produce a rounder track. The immense weight of the animal tends to obliterate such minor distinctive features in most cases where the ground is not very hard.
The dew-claws on the bull are always farther apart than on the cow, and as they are much blunter they make a good mark to consider.