Tracker Manual: A practical guide to animal tracking in southern Africa

Title: Tracker Manual
Subtitle: A practical guide to animal tracking in southern Africa
Author: Alex van den Heever; Karel Benadie; Renias Mhlongo: Ian Thomas
Publisher: Penguin Random House South Africa
Imprint: Struik Nature
2nd edition. Cape Town, South Africa 2024
ISBN 9781775847748 / ISBN 978-1-77-584774-8
Softcover, 15 x 21 cm, 376 pages, throughout colour photos and images

About: Tracker Manual. A practical guide to animal tracking in southern Africa

This Tracker Manual, a practical guide to animal tracking in southern Africa, puts you 'into the skin' of the trainees. Everything you read and measure is a reflection not only of the spoor that they will come to recognise and describe, but an indication of the standard that has been set for Tracker Academy's deserved recognition by the Field Guide Association of South Africa and the Sector Education Training Authority, as a legitimate training facility for future guides and trackers. The Tracker Manual presents the more concrete and obvious wildlife signs for some 200 animals and teams them with a host of seemingly unrelated details to give a comprehensive picture of traffic through the bush. Simple, bulleted text highlights the key features of each animal's tracks and signs, accurate track drawings offer a clear visual guide to the animals' prints, multiple photographs, many annotated, of the animals, their tracks, dung, middens and scrapes, show what to look for. With an instructive introduction, this detailed and richly illustrated Tracker Manual to southern Africa's animal tracks and signs will prove invaluable in the field.

Alex van den Heever is general manager of the Tracker Academy. He has spent the last 20 years working as an environmental manager, guide, and trainer and assessor of trackers in South Africa. He has travelled to many of the world's most remote regions to learn traditional tracking skills from expert trackers.

Karel Benadie is currently the Academy's Lead Tracker trainer based in the Great Karoo. He spent 42 years as a tracker and field ranger in the Karoo National Park. Using tracking-based evidence, he collected data on the habits of black rhino for a respected scientific journal.

Renias Mhlongo was born in what is today the greater Kruger National Park. He is the Academy's Lead Tracker mentor, and is based in the greater Kruger National Park where he has lived for 40 years. He was a member of the team of trackers who successfully helped settle the now-famous leopards of Londolozi in the 1980s.

Ian Thomas is a speaker, author, photographer and a FGASA scout - an award that recognises excellence in guiding, weapon handling, and tracking. He has illustrated the tracks in this book.

Content: Tracker Manual. A practical guide to animal tracking in southern Africa

Foreword
Preface
Acknowledgements
Introduction to tracking
Practical tracking
Reading tracks and signs
Track morphology
About this book
Animals' tracks and signs
Carnivores
Large mammals
Antelopes
Small mammals
Primates
Hares and rodents
Amphibians and reptiles
Birds
Insects and other invertebrates
Theory for trackers
Animal track comparison
Glossary
Bibliography
Index