What are moles and do I have them!?
Moles are small, cylindrical-shaped subterranean critters that have tiny eyes and very, very sensitive noses. They have specialized front feet (perfect for tunneling) and might be likened to the killer whales of your lawn (at least from a worm’s perspective) as they are effective, efficient, and voracious hunters. Male moles are called “boars” and female moles are called “sows”. As a species, they have evolved to survive in low-light, low-oxygen environments, which helps them to thrive underground where they are often safe from predators.
Mole tunnel tracks
Moles famously tunnel through lawns smelling out munchies like worms, grubs, termites, and other subterranean creepy crawlies. As an interesting side note, moles can actually smell in stereo, able to determine details on size, location, and speed of prey simply from smell alone. Their cousins, the shrew family, have even been observed smelling out prey underwater!
A mole’s tunnel is actually a giant “worm trap”. Once a worm falls into the tunnel, the mole will quickly grab it and bite it. A mole’s saliva contains a toxin that paralyzes worms. Once the worm is paralyzed the mole will transfer the worm to a “larder tunnel” to keep its snack for a later time. Researchers have actually found tunnels full of thousands of worms, which for this author, sounds absolutely horrifying.
Back to why this is important for lawns:
On the topside, homeowners would notice mole hills (and possibly make a mountain out of them - pun intended) and also the often raised (or collapsed) results from a tunnel being burrowed below. Unfortunately, an industrious mole can do a lot of damage to a lawn in a very short period of time, because they can dig up to 18 feet an hour! Their tunnels can kill the plants growing above, and the humps and gullies can make for mowing and ankle-rolling hazards, which quickly become the bane of a lawn hobbyist’s existence.
I have a mole in my lawn! That must mean I have grubs! RIGHT?!
Unfortunately, no. Moles eat lots and lots of things, which means having a mole does not necessarily mean you have a grub problem. In fact, it’s 100% normal to have grubs in a healthy lawn. Therefore, running out and killing the grubs in your lawn will not necessarily get a mole to magically disappear. For more information about grubs and how to control them, read here.
How can I get moles to stay away from, or leave, my lawn?
Honestly, if we had a surefire way to answer this question, we would probably be at least hundred-aires. Over the years, we have tried many of the “farmer’s almanac” style methods with varying results. The only method that has any consistency we have observed is to actually trap or kill the mole.
What is the best method of getting rid of a mole in my lawn?
Traps. Without a doubt, traps are the most effective method we have observed in our 50+ years in the industry.
Do you have any pro tips for setting a mole trap?
Yes! First off, we carry this style of mole eliminator trap because we find them to be most effective at killing the mole as quickly as possible. These are the same style we use to protect our fields here at the farm. These scissor traps are also easy to set and move as needed. Here are the steps we follow to set a trap:
Find all the tunnels you can and physically “smush” the tunnels back down by walking on them. Then leave the tunnels (without setting a trap yet) for at least half a day.
When you return you should be able to see some tunnels have been pushed back up by the mole moving underneath, this will give you a good idea about which tunnels are most active.
Set the trap in an active tunnel (always be careful about handling the blade as little as possible so the trap doesn’t smell like you).
Check the trap often. Move it every one to two days if you haven’t killed the mole yet (repeating Steps 1-3 with each reset).
Once you get a mole, remove and clean the trap immediately so it is ready for future use.