Identifying mammal droppings

Traces of Hedgehog (CC image by Rachtheh)

If looking out for animal tracks didn't make you feel like Ray Mears, surely developing expertise in identifying animals from their poo, will?

Not that I'm suggesting that all types of scat would be appropriate in your collection... no-one is going to thank you for a stinking scraped-up otter spraint (a photo would be best). But nice compact dry pellety examples - like rabbit or deer droppings - might be welcome.

I think you do need to be a bit cautious even then... it's not just any smell, there's going to be bacteria and possible parasites to consider. My colleagues may not thank me for this, but perhaps if you have samples you'd like to submit, you should bring them in and I can freeze and then freeze-dry them. I'd imagine that'd get rid of most things.

Naturally, whatever an animal has been eating is going to affect the appearance of its droppings. You might see seeds, fur or insect wings that haven't been digested, depending on species.  You'll probably have to accept that some are unidentifiable. But the details you record in your notebook about location and habitat might indicate some species are more likely culprits than others (squirrel droppings in Bristol aren't going to be from red squirrels, for example, and rabbits and hares leave theirs in different types of locations).

There's a slightly bizarre offering from the BBC Wildlife magazine here: "How many of these droppings can you spot?" 
but if you want something a bit more serious-looking and comprehensive, most books on mammals will give a few details. For example, we have copies of the Collins Field Guide to Mammals of Britain and Europe (McDonald and Barrett). The book I mentioned in regard to plaster casts also has details.

But one of the joys of the internet is that you can find a photo of practically anything. So confirmation in colour (in various degrees of reliability) is also not far away.

Update: Acer Ecology have made a page describing the finer points of difference between different bat poos. Isn't that nice. But do remember that meddling with bats incurs a stiff fine in this country. So no bat squeezing.


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