Wild turkeys in the snow.

Animal tracks left in the snow made tracking game somewhat easier than in other seasons. Hunting and trapping of white-tailed deer, squirrel, rabbit, raccoon, turkey, beaver, muskrat, and other animals supplied needed protein in the winter. As winter approaches, many mammals grow heavy winter coats and put on fat in the fall to keep them warm and carry them through the winter. Native Americans exploited this fact by increasing their hunting in the fall and early winter to acquire bedding and clothing, energy-rich fatty meat and bone marrow. Surplus meat from successful late fall hunts were dried and smoked for later use consumption. Thus like stored plant foods, dried and smoked meats were important to the Mississippian's winter diet.