Calendar| GIS| Shop| Outreach| Press| Contact| Search
The morphology of the metacarpal pads contains at least three levels of detail that we will be using to identify individuals.
   
1. Gross Characteristics

            metacarpal pad, highlighted  footprint
                        Photo of a Metacarpal Pad                                               Metacarpal Pad Print

The overall size and shape of the pad is occasionally useful for distinguishing between individuals, but most commonly will be employed  as an aid to identify which of the fisher's four feet made the track.
   
2. Row Patterns

            metacarpal pad close-up   pad print close-up
                            Close-up View of the Pad                                  Print From a Similar Pad Segment

This close-up of the main portion of a left metacarpal pad shows the rows. Like the gross characteristics, the row patterns noticeable at this level of detail are also useful in identifying which of the four feet made the track. The row patterns of all left front feet, for example, are roughly similar.
   
3. Dot Patterns
                pad details, artist's conception Dot Pattern

                          Sketch Showing Wart-like Structures                       Resulting Dots Seen in Prints

The artist's rendering depicts a portion of a metacarpal pad, similar to the previous photo but zoomed in even closer. You can see that each row is actually made up of a series of wart-like bumps. The size, shape, and spacing of the individual wart-like structures are highly variable across the surface of the pad and form the third level of detail. In clear footprints, this level of detail is visible and it is here that we will concentrate our efforts to identify individuals.

Advanced Details  advanced
Next  next
Fisher Print Home  fisher home link




Museum Open Daily: 9:30 am to 5 pm | Carousel Open Daily: 10 am to 4:30 pm
Office of Cultural Education | New York State Education Department
Information: 518-474-5877 | Contact Us