Moles vs Voles - Not Pretty

A friend once told me voles are parasites of moles. Well, I knew what he meant, not meaning a vole directly is physically a parasite of a mole, but that voles take advantage of work done by moles, following in their wolverine-like webbed footsteps.

Well, that's not really true. Many people assume voles are simply miniature versions of moles. Of course, unless captured or trapped, we rarely see one or the other.

Moles are subterranean creatures and are no fans of light although their eyes are barely recognizable. They eat mainly invertebrates such as worms, grubs, etc. and some nuts. Mole runs, elevated lines of turf and grass found in some lawns, are often referred to as worm traps, as the mole waits for an indication of a worm falling into its tunnel system and then it's off to paralyze it before consumption.

Along with their trapping tunnels and other deeper tunnels used for travel to and from the deeper burrow the earth usually gives way somewhat when underfoot.

Voles are rodents and related to the mouse and in some areas are referred to as meadow mice. They are primarily herbivores, although eating some dead animals they stumble upon, usually working under groundcover, decomposed plant life or snow.

They will let you know their presence in your lawn by leaving paths of eaten grass and grass roots, but they can also wreak havoc on other plants or shrubs and their roots, and even kill quite mature trees by girdling - eating away a rather sizable circular band of bark low to the ground (not good at that climbing stuff), enough to possibly cause a tree's demise over time.

As for moles; there are plenty of other animals which will dig holes in our lawns to find a meal. The underground runs and patterned partial collapsing of your lawn are probably more indicative of mole activity than anything else.

There are all sorts of recommended ways to rid one's property of moles (and voles) - most refuted by experts and victims who who have tried most everything. With some painstaking (not really) research I have found there are two which seem to work for moles:

• Catching and/or killing with mechanical traps - you'd best be ready to spend some time tending to your yard with this approach.
• Killing with poison laced bait worms.

So, if you think you may have moles or voles on your property, get out there and do some investigating before you make a mountain out of a mole hill.

Holy Moly!

I know. Enough already!