Have you ever found small mounds of soil in your yard and wondered how in the world did they get there? They could have beeen made by a mole. In this article we will discuss both how to exterminate moles and how to trap and release them. Read on to learn best practices on how to reclaim your lawn. Goodbye mole!
Description of a Mole Animal
A mole is a burrowing mammal that is fairly small in size. Moles possess small eyes and ears, a protruding nose, and large claws that make them very good at digging. While they are not completely blind, they do have poor eye sight and use their other senses of smell and touch to get by.
Moles spend the majority of their time alone, as they are quite solitary creatures, spending most of their days hunting for food and using their rather large claws to dig tunnels. A typical mole tunnel is approximately 2 inches in diameter and runs about a foot below the surface of the lawn. The mole is so efficient at digging these tunnels that it can create approximately 18 feet of tunnel per hour. That is about 144 feet of tunnel in an 8 hour workday!
A mole’s diet consists of earthworms, centipedes, grubs, millipedes and other adult insects. They are known as insectivores.
Difference Between a Mole and a Vole
Moles and voles do have a minimal amount of similarities – they actually rhyme – but at the same time they are very different. Aside from their rhyming scheme, they are both relatively the same size (about 4-7 inches in length) and they both dig tunnels. The vole, however, is mostly an herbivore. The tunnels created by the vole are more along the surface, and they tend to eat their way through your grass roots in order to reach its burrow. A Vole will oftentimes piggyback on a moles tunnel digging prowess as well, using the established tunnels for their own use.
Because a vole is an herbivore, it can contribute to damage in your garden, eating plants, leaves and stems. Moles however, can cause greater amounts of damage to your yard as they dig their underground tunnels essentially everywhere.
Another obvious difference between a mole and a vole has to do with their facial appearances. A vole’s facial appearance will closely resemble that of a mouse, where as a mole’s facial appearance is more suited for the amount of digging and living beneath your yard’s surface that it does. The mole’s eyes and ears are not immediately visible to us for that reason – essentially hidden beneath its own fur to protect these features from any dirt they tunnel through.
A mole also can be distinguished by their rather large forefeet. They use forefeet to dig and even to trap a worm or grub against the tunnel walls. Below is a picture of both a mole and a vole. You can immediately notice their differences.
| Mole | Vole |
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Damage a Mole Can Do
So, what damage can a mole do to your property? Well, as mentioned above, they tend to build a maze of tunnels underground, damaging your lawn, the roots of your trees and your flower beds. These tunnels may do damage to your lawn’s appearance, making sections of your lawn raised and uneven. When moles dig their tunnels, they tend to separate plantings to their roots. This will often cause much damage to the plants and grass could allow weeds the opportunity to take over the area.
Also, if your pest problem is left untreated moles may contribute to damage to your home’s foundation and walkways. How? Well, moles and their tunnels may contribute to something called the freeze-thaw cycle. This is when the temperature goes from above freezing (32 degrees Fahrenheit) to below the freezing mark, and then comes back above 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Because water may accumulate in their tunnels, and some of these tunnels may be too close to your home’s foundation and underneath your sidewalks and walkways, cracks may form. This is obviously not wanted and may even be expensive to correct.
How Can You Get Rid of a Mole?
There are some quality products sold today that will help get rid of moles. Some products are natural, some consist of the no-kill style, trapping methodology, some rely on deterrent strategies, and others consist of ways to exterminate moles – killing them. We will discuss each below.
No-Kill Style Traps for Moles
Trapping moles in a catch and release trap is a very effective way to humanely remove any mole from your property. Just make sure when you release the mole, do so far enough away from your home (5 miles will suffice) as well as anybody else’s home or property. Also, make sure you check your trap regularly, perhaps moving the trap if no mole has been trapped and, when you do trap the mole, making sure it is not contained for too long.
Below is catch and release trap specifically made for moles (link to Amazon.com).
| Live Mole Trap – By: RelaxDays |
Products to Exterminate Moles
There are many products available to exterminate moles available today. We will explore a few options below.
Traps to Exterminate Moles
These types of traps are preferred by many, as you do not have to check the trap as frequently as you do with a live catch and release trap and they are extremely effective. Below are a few highly rated traps available on the market today. All links below to Amazon.com.
| Easy Set Mole Eliminator Trap – By: WireTek | Easy Set Mole Trap – By: Harris |
| The Black Box Trap – By: Victor | |
Poison Bait for Moles
As mentioned previously, moles dine on earthworms, grubs and other insects. Below are a few baits that appear like a natural food source to the mole, however, these baits will exterminate moles once consumed. All links to Amazon.com.
| Worm Bait – By: Tomcat | Mole Bait Worms – By: Bell Labs |
| Grub Bait – By: Tomcat | Poison Peanuts – By: Victor |
Deterrent Strategies for Moles – Ultrasonic Style
One device that is often used to repel moles from you yard is of the ultrasonic variety. These devices will give off sonic pulses every few seconds. These sonic pulses will penetrate the soil throughout the mole’s living/hunting quarters and will force the mole to leave the area. They run on solar energy which is a plus (no need for cords or batteries) and, most ultrasonic repellents work in the same manner, but there are a few things to keep in mind before purchasing one.
- How long does the ultrasonic repellent need to charge before being effective. Obviously, some areas of the map and seasons of the year will have more hours of sunlight than others. A rule of thumb is to make sure the device can fully charge within 6 to 8 hours or less.
- How long will the ultrasonic device continue to operate? Will it only operate for 3 or 4 hours per night? Or will it run throughout the night and charge back up in the daytime hours?
- How much ground does a single ultrasonic repellent cover? How many devices do you need to cover the entire property (or at least the area the mole is occupying).
- Is there a repellent that is affordable and still will do a great job?
Some ultrasonic repellants that meet the above standards and are effective on moles are as follows (links to Amazon.com).
| Leonnn Mole Repellent – By: Leonnn | |
| Solar Mole repellent Stakes – By Thanos | Solar Powered Mole Repellent – By: Toro |
Deterrent Strategies for Moles – Natural and Wind Powered
There are a few devices out there that are similar to the solar powered ultrasonic solutions mentioned above that will drive moles away from your yard thru the power of wind. Below are a couple of options to consider (links to Amazon.com).
| Mole Chasing Windmill – By: Lehman’s | Sunflower/Daisy Pinwheel – By: Beloit Plastics |
Castor Oil to Get Rid of Moles
Many believe castor oil to be an incredibly powerful way to get rid of moles from your yard. Simply mix together castor oil, dish detergent and water and apply the concoction to your lawn. It is believed that the castor oil will create an unpleasant living environment for any mole, as the oil will coat both the food sources of the mole as well as contaminating the living quarters of the burrowing mole, making it uncomfortable to live there and seeking a more suitable environment elsewhere. Below are a couple of products available (links to Amazon.com).
| Mole Repellent 100% Castor Oil – By: Nature’s Mace | Lawn Mole Castor Oil – By: Baar |
For castor oil in a different form, there are castor oil granules as well. Below are a couple of mentions (links to Amazon.com).
| Castor Oil Pellets – By: Glaobule | Mole and Gopher Repellent – By: Chase |
In Conclusion
As far as the backyard is concerned, there are a bunch of creatures like chipmunks and squirrels that I actually enjoy having around to some degree. In the case of the mole, however, no thank you. I think it would be best to both trap the creature humanely and release it away from any human’s home, make the creature leave voluntarily with an ultrasonic type solution mentioned above, or exterminate moles via traps or poisons.
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