Moles

Moles are insect-eating mammals and are highly specialized for life in the soil. They are sometimes confused with meadow mice or shrews, but can be easily identified by their greatly enlarged forefeet, which are modified for digging. Adults range from 5 to 8 inches long and have very small concealed eyes and ears and short, thick, soft, dark velvety gray fur, which is smooth if brushed either way. The two species commonly encountered in the Northeast are the Eastern mole (Scalopus aquaticus) and the star-nosed mole (Condylura cristat).

Moles spend most of their lives within their extensive systems of underground tunnels. Insects, insect larvae (especially white grubs), and earthworms make up the bulk of the mole diet, but moles may also feed on plant material, such as bulbs. They occasionally damage lawns and gardens as they tunnel though soil searching for food. Eastern moles tunnel near the soil surface so soil is forced up in sinuous ridges. Star-nosed moles usually tunnel deeper in the soil and build up scattered mounds of soil on the surface; they do not make the snakelike ridges.

Moles are difficult to control because of their subterranean habits. They can be controlled most successfully through the use of special mole traps designed to overcome the difficulties of trapping them within their tunnels. Mole traps of several types can be purchased from garden supply stores.

Before setting moles traps, locate tunnels that are in current use. Active surface tunnels of the Eastern mole can be located by pushing down the surface ridges on a number of tunnels and noticing which ones are repaired within a day or two. Those are the places to set mole traps. Where the star-nosed mole's tunnels come to the surface, they leave a mound of soil. It is necessary to dig around these mounds to locate a tunnel before the trap can be set in place. The trap should be set in a straight section of tunnel; the harpoon or wire loops (depending on the type of trap being used) should be worked up and down several times to be certain that nothing is in the soil to impede their action.

Snap-back mouse traps can also be used to catch moles. The traps are placed with the trigger at right angles  to the tunnel, after excavation down to the tunnel floor. It is not necessary to bait these traps, since the mole should be caught when attempting to clear the trap from the tunnel. After the trap is set, the hole should be covered with a board or box to exclude light.

Many home remedies have been suggested to solve mole problems. These remedies include placing irritating materials such as broken glass, thorny rose bush branches, mothballs, castor oil, and even human hair in the burrow, in an effort to drive moles away. None of these approaches has proved successful in stopping mole damage or in driving moles from an area. Commercially available mole repellents have little data to prove that they are effective.

Adapted from James W. Caslick and Daniel J. Decker, Cornell University, 2001.