Moles are intriguing animals that can be found all over the world. Because of their elaborate tunnel systems, they are frequently regarded as garden pests. They are also not blind despite spending most of their life underground.
When it comes to mole identification, these chubby creatures lack ears and have a pointed, hairless nose as well as small eyes. Moles often reach a length of 4.4 to 6.25 inches from snout to rump. Their tails increase their length by 1 to 1.6 inches. They normally weigh 2.5 to 4.5 ounces.
Are you interested in learning more about these unique, silly-looking mammals? If so, you’ve come to the right place to learn about mole identification. Read on as we share everything you need to know about common moles, including their behavior, habitats, and removal.
Mole Identification: How to Identify a Mole
Moles are small mammals that are easily distinguished because of their unique physical features.
The rodent family is different from the mole, which is a member of the order Insectivora. Moles can be anywhere between 5 and 8 inches long. They can have pink feet, noses, and tails with either brown or gray fur.
Because their light-sensitive eyes are covered in fur, moles have eyes that are typically invisible. Moles have fleshy noses that they use for their sense of touch and large front paws with unique claws for digging tunnels.
If you think you’ve seen a mole in your yard, read more about pest control to determine if the animal can be removed.
Mole Habits
Moles live the majority of their lives underground in tunnels. In fact, moles are such loners that the Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management considers three to five moles per acre a lot.
Moles travel through tunnels, but tunnels are more than simply subterranean holes. Moles create unique chambers at the extremities of tunnels used as maternity wards and sleeping quarters. Moles occasionally spend generations living in a network of tunnels before leaving.
Moles spend their time searching for food and digging tunnels. Their average lifespan is about three years.
Moles benefit some homeowners because they eat various harmful insects, and their digging aerates the soil. However, many believe that any advantages moles might have are outweighed by the harm they do to their lawns.
Diet
It is a myth that moles tunnel into gardens to consume plant roots. They’re after the earthworms that live in garden soil. Moles love earthworms so much that they consume almost their body weight in worms daily!
As insectivores, moles consume between 70 and 100 percent of their body weight in worms, grubs, and insects daily. Moles continuously excavate, leaving behind a network of tunnels to search down their ground-dwelling prey. The mole’s ravenous appetite might be explained by how much energy is required for this digging.
In addition to worms, grubs, and slugs, moles also eat insect larvae.
Mole Habitats
When learning about mole identification, you’ll find the majority of North America, Europe, and Asia are home to moles. The Eastern mole is the most prevalent of the seven species on American soil.
Moles are by nature fossorial animals that dwell and forage underground in extensive networks of tunnels and burrows. They are most prevalent in fields, meadows, orchards, and forests with lots of shaded plants that provide this subsurface environment since they love digging in loose, moist soil.
The territory of a lone mole can reach 2.7 acres. Large, intricate tunnel systems with various sections for living and foraging make up a mole’s underground habitat.
Mole Identification – Reproduction and Offspring
Male moles will expand their tunnels during the breeding season to reach other territories in search of potential mates. After breeding is complete, a spherical nest chamber is made and lined with dry plant material.
Three to four hairless babies are born to one mother mole at a time. The pups, or young moles, begin to sprout hair at 14 days old. The pups are weaned at four to five weeks, and after 33 days, they leave the nest. Puppies are entirely separated from their mother and tunnel home by five to six weeks.
How to Get Rid of Moles
While moles can be interesting creatures, and learning about mole identification can be fun, nobody wants them digging in their yard or garden. When your lovely grass is crisscrossed by a web of tunnels and unattractive mounds, it is a terrible sight to behold. Your yard gets completely destroyed by moles.
There are steps you can take to reclaim your lawn if they’ve intruded, and we’ve listed a few below:
- Remove their food source
- Avoid overwatering your lawn
- Call pest control
- Poison moles
- Trap moles
You can also dig a trench around your lawn and garden that is approximately 2 feet deep and six inches wide to create a human-made border.
Rocks can be used to line the trench, or wire mesh or hardware cloth with 34-inch or smaller holes can be used instead. This is a time-consuming yet long-lasting method to prevent moles from digging into your yard.
Of these mole removal and mole identification options, calling a pest control professional is the best way to remove moles from your yard! An expert will come to your home and assess the problem while efficiently removing the moles.
Put Your Mole Identification Skills to the Test
After reading our guide, you should be much better at mole identification and know how to identify a mole! While moles are intriguing, strange-looking animals, they can cause a lot of damage to your yard and garden if you let them tunnel. Be sure to call pest control if you see signs of a mole infestation in your yard, and put your mole identification skills to the test!
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While these tips will help you learn the mole identification process and reduce the likelihood of a mole infestation, there is no guaranteed way to eliminate all risks.
