Mole Control Solutions

This pest is enemy No. 1 in many people's minds. Even professionals face unique challenges with moles. Every year we receive numerous calls concerning the damage to lawns, gardens, cemeteries and playgrounds caused by these mammals. Only a few mole control measures are reliable due to the dietary and foraging habits of these lawn pests.

Description

Moles (Fig.1) are mammals. They should not to be confused with rodents. The adults measure from 5 to 8 inches (13-20 cm) in length and have very fine, dark gray or brown fur. The nose, feet and tail are pink. The snout is fleshy and serves as a tactile organ. The eyes are small, sometimes concealed by fur, light sensitive and capable of short-range vision at best. The front feet are broad and are equipped with well-developed claws for digging.

Distribution

There are seven species of moles in the United States, but none are found in the Great Basin or Rocky Mountain regions (Fig.2). The eastern mole (Scalopus aquaticus), hairy-tailed mole (Parascalops breweri) and star-nosed mole (Condylura cristata) are the most common species and range from the western Great Plains to the East Coast. The eastern mole is the most common of the three eastern species and is often associated with lawn damage. The hairy-tailed

mole is commonly found in woodland and mountain areas. The star-nosed mole is found in swampy areas and its tunnels are deeper than those of the eastern mole. On the West Coast, Townsend's mole (Scapanus townsendii) occurs in Oregon and Washington, whereas the broad-footed mole (Scapanus latimanus) is a common species in California and western Nevada. The shrew mole (a.k.a. Gibb's mole, Neurotrichus gibbsii) is found from the San Francisco Bay area northward but is rare and so small that it is seldom encountered. The coast mole (Scapanus orarius) is very similar to the broad-footed mole; its range extends from northwest California northward into British Columbia and eastward into west central Idaho.

Biology

Male and female moles occupy the same tunnels for only a brief period of time; after mating, they quickly part company. Moles produce one litter per year in the spring, averaging three to four young. The young are weaned at four weeks and stay with the female in her tunnels for another two or three week; then they begin tunneling on their own. The young develop quickly and reach adult size in four to eight weeks.

Moles do not hibernate; therefore, they may be active day or night throughout the year. The mole's great strength is attributed to specialized bone and muscle structure. A mole can exert a lateral digging force of up to 35 times its body weight, enabling it to move quickly through a variety of soil types over a wide range of climatic conditions.

Feeding

The primary food of most species is earthworms; however, a variety of arthropods found in the soil and turf, particularly insect larvae (e.g., scarab grubs, cutworms, armyworms), are readily eaten. Plant roots and bulbs may be damaged by moles during the processes of tunneling and digging out insect larvae. Some western mole species have been known to include plant material in their diet if the preferred food supply is inadequate. The eastern mole has been observed to feed on small mammals and young birds that cross its path. A mouse, vole or shrew that makes the mistake of bumping noses with a mole in its tunnel is quickly consumed. Likewise, a fledgling bird that falls out of the nest onto a mole's foraging territory may be observed to disappear into the ground. The mole's appetite seems almost insatiable, since it usually eats in excess of its body weight each day. This food requirement is necessary due to its extremely active life.

Tunneling

Moles build an extensive complex of tunnels varying in depth. Tunnels close to the surface often are visible while the deep tunnels remain concealed. The conspicuous, shallow meandering ridges in the sod are the mole's feeding tunnels. These tunnels are generally used a few times and then abandoned. Most of these branches off from a main surface run that is commonly reused. Surface activity occurs most consistently in the spring and fall of the year. Deep tunnels are used as living quarters, retreats from climatic extremes and for rearing of

young. Molehills are formed by soil excavated and pushed up from the deep tunnels. The appearance of molehills, feeding tunnels and the discovery of a spongy feel in areas of the lawn or soil are the mole's signature.

Sometimes customers confuse mole damage with the narrow paths chewed through turf grass by meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus). Voles may dig small holes into mulch beneath shrubbery and under landscaping timbers. Voles are insect and seed feeders and are likely to be active near bird feeders.

The number of surface runs or dirt mounds is not indicative of the number of moles present. The number of feeding tunnels established depends on the abundance of food in that particular area. If the supply of earthworms and soil insects is adequate, a mole may create only a few tunnels. Depending on the species of mole, deep tunnels may run 6 to 24 inches (15 - 61 cm) below the surface. Moles can tunnel at a rate of 12 to 15 feet (3.7 - 4.6 m) per hour. In favorable areas shallow tunnels can be generated at a rate of one foot per minute. Moles only venture above ground for occasional surface prey and during spring dispersal.

Moles usually do not share their tunnels with other moles, although some species, such as the star- nosed mole and hairy-tailed mole, will tolerate moles of the same species. Tunnels may be invaded by other animals (at considerable risk), most notably shrews, voles, mice, rats or pocket gophers. When this happens, moles sometimes get blamed for injury to plant roots, tubers and seeds

Control

Trapping is the most effective method for controlling moles; it requires time, patience and practical knowledge of the mole's habits to be successful.

Since earthworms, insects and other arthropods are the mole's main food source, removing these will sometimes encourage moles to move elsewhere. Several insecticides are registered for beetle grub control but most have little effect on earthworms which are the mole's main source of food. Even if this method is effective, reducing the mole's food sources may result in increased foraging and thus more tunnel damage to turf. Most of the chemical-based methods are unreliable because they provide limited results.

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