Tracking & Movement Indicators

In order to be a well-rounded and effective Tracker, I don't believe in studying only the Movement Indicators. (Some circles call them "Pressure Releases" based upon the teachings of Tom Brown Jr., but since I didn't learn these from him, and since I'm developing a list of functional indicators, I will only refer to them as Movement Indicators or MIs, so as not to infringe or plagiarize.) That wouldn't be realistic because Tracking is not restricted to one perspective or paradigm.

Personally, I study things like:

Landscape (Glacial impact, topography, etc.)
Water flow
Flora
Fauna
Ecology
Forest age and composition
Sunlight
Wind
Weather
Substrate conditions, structure, and make-up
Travel routes
Draws
Concentric lines
Bird activity
Human activity (roadways, distant smells, sounds)
Skeletal structure
Animal biology
Foot Morphology
Clinical Gait Analysis/Kinesiology
Natural, Physiological Gait Analysis
Stride, Straddle, Pitch, Trail Width
Dust & Grit Impressions
Fingerprints

Signs:
Rubs
Chews (and dental morphology)
Scratches
Smudges
Scrapes
Scat and Urine (smells, composition, make-up)
Hairs from different parts of the body
Blood spatter
Kill Procedure
Feather Morphology
Decomposition and associated Entomology
Burns (bark, bones--whatever)
Litter
Breaks, bends, tears, creases
Basic Mycology
Nutrient Impact on soils, invertebrates, flora, and up the chain
Pollutant Impact
Tracks
Movement Indicators

It's all Tracking. There is no "right" or "wrong" method; there is no one better way than another. As far as I'm concerned, it's just a matter of how much information you want from the scene and surroundings.

I just happen to be extremely passionate about the movement indicator element because it gives me more accurate detail on a deeper level of knowing the maker of the tracks.

Again, I wouldn't waste my time if it was invalid or useless. It's part of my job.

Identifiers are like tags or fingerprints that are specific in their combinations to a particular maker, and they present consistently no matter what the maker may do to try to camouflage them. Identifiers are important when tracking a specific subject, such as a missing person, or, more commonly in my experience, a missing- or “nuisance-“animal. At this point, aside from developing an ability to establish identifiers in tracks, I have been able to identify movement indicators representative of these functions (barring general locomotion):

• Full/Empty Bladder
• Full/Empty Colon
• Knee injury/ailment
• Back injury/ailment
• Male/Female indicators
• Menses
• Carrying objects over five pounds (in either hand, both hands, or on back)
• Arm movements (major positions)
• Head Turning, lifting, lowering
• Internal shifts and disturbances in several areas:
o Stomach/abdomen
o Sinuses
o Lungs/Diaphragm

I’ve noticed that there are at least two major “maps” of zones for discerning the gross motor, fine motor, and internal indicators, and much of them overlap. As well, many of the gross motor indicators present in the opposite places that they occur, making reading tricky at times. There is much research to do, as I am working alone to develop a system based upon methods supposedly established by generations of native trackers.

I’m also confident that the indicators I am discovering are useful to identify internal ailments on at least an elementary level for use in Chiropractic treatments, for example.

It's relatively easy to see the gross motor mi's (recoil, overthrusts, sweeps, etc.) and to practice getting to know how they work. That's the beginning. As you become proficient in one medium, take it to another and become proficient there. Even in one medium you will not see the exact same overthrust every time you do a specific turn, but there are reasons for that that simply have to do with the body not being a robotic machine. You will, however see the same overthrust for that turn every single time.

If you want to figure out the fine motor mi's, start with something "simple." Walk through your box. Then walk through your box carrying a ten-pound object. You'll see a difference, but you won't know why. Then you'll look closer and after a while you'll think you found it. Then when you do it again, it will be different. Now do this hundreds of times. Eventually, you'll figure it out. This is what I've done. Nobody stood over my shoulder or gave me documentation on this stuff.

But this neither precludes nor excludes any other element of Tracking. Study EVERYTHING, and find your own comfort level. The point is to find your place in the progression of elements where you feel satiated with your Tracking. The cool thing is that the progression is limitless.