9707 Craun Road, Dewitt, Michigan 48820, United States
moles/shrews
DAMAGE:
Moles are destructive to the yards we work hard to keep beautiful. They are great aereators, but at the expense of creating an unsightly runway and series of mounds. There is no such thing as relocating a mole. You can do some exclusion work, but extermination is the best policy. Below is a sidewalk that a mole may cause the faliure of.
The problem here is that in the late fall & early spring, the combination of water and fluctuating temperatures means that frost and ice could get into the tunnel system and cause the cement to heave and crack. This can be very expensive. The best bet is to eliminate the mole before he costs you more money.
A few traps and some time make a lot of sense when a lot of folks pay good money for a nice lawn. Call us today and we will take care of the problem.
(left) Here is a great example of an otherwise nice lawn pockmarked by a mole's activity.
Latin name: Scalopus aquaticus
Eastern moles, or "talpas," are an animal oddity that are rarely seen. Small and sleek-furred, these mammals possess a remarkable structure adaptation of a body so unique they can flourish in total darkness. Moles move through their intricate chambers of darkness with remarkable dexterity. As they thrive in a subterranean life style, they leave highly visible clues of their presence.
Moles are "master excavators." Their body design is aided by a high metabolism which provides a capability of pushing through and moving hundreds of yards of earth during its short life span of three years. Nothing seems to deter this short-lived animal; from hardpan clay to organic soils, it doggedly seeks out worms, spiders, and other invertebrates to satisfy its voracious appetite.
The short-snouted mole squirms and wiggles their flexible bodies through the earth, pushing dirt balls along, and than flattening the soil pieces against a tunnel wall. Only then will they move these little soil lumps along the wall, using short hind legs, until a lumping mass is behind them. These lumps of soil may be pushed up to the surface forming hollow-centered hills.
Molehills are their ventilation shafts, which connect the tunnels and rooms of a mole passageway. These air holes also allow "talpas" to quickly zoom up to the surface. Highly active periods are coupled with short resting sessions. Moles are truly dependent on an abundant food supply. They will consume their weight in worms and other soil dwellers during a day and night of forging and resting.
Solitary in habit, moles mate quickly, then resume their lone life style in their own space of tunnels and rooms. Small litters of four young quickly leave the nesting area after a two-month growing period.
Remarkable animals as they may be, we cant have them screwing up our yards, can we?
