The presence of a mole mound, often called a molehill, is a recognizable indicator of a mole’s extensive underground activities. Moles create these mounds by excavating soil from their deep tunnel system and pushing the excess earth up to the surface. Moles maintain two types of tunnels: permanent deep tunnels for nesting and travel, and temporary surface tunnels for hunting. The molehill is visible evidence of the deeper tunnels’ construction, serving as both a ventilation shaft and a disposal site for the displaced dirt.
The Distinct Appearance of a Mole Mound
A mole mound is typically volcano-shaped, giving it a distinct, symmetrical, and conical appearance. This classic shape results because the mole pushes the excavated soil straight up from a vertical tunnel connected to the deep burrow system below. The soil within the mound is usually fine and uniform, lacking large clumps, rocks, or debris since the earth originates from a deeper, settled layer of the ground.
The key structural element is the centrally located plug, which is the covered hole where the mole pushed the dirt out. This exit is often completely concealed beneath the peak of the conical dirt pile. The mound itself can vary in size, sometimes reaching over a foot in diameter, as the mole expands its network of permanent tunnels located several feet beneath the surface.
Telling Mole Mounds Apart from Gopher Mounds
Differentiating a mole mound from a gopher mound is important for proper pest identification, as the two are often confused. A mole’s mound is symmetrical and conical, with the entrance hole plugged and located directly in the center. In contrast, a gopher mound is typically crescent-shaped or horseshoe-shaped, looking like a fan of dirt pushed out to one side.
The most reliable distinction is the location of the soil plug. A gopher pushes soil out laterally from a tunnel, resulting in a dirt plug that is noticeably off-center or to one side of the mound. Gopher mounds also tend to be larger and flatter on one side. Furthermore, gopher excavated soil may contain rocks and plant matter because gophers tunnel at shallower depths, while mole mounds contain only fine, uniform soil.
Identifying Surface Tunnels and Feeding Runs
Mole activity is not limited to the deep mounds, as they also create a separate system of surface tunnels, often called feeding runs or runways. These are visible as raised ridges that crisscross the lawn just beneath the grass. The ridges are formed when the mole tunnels only a few inches below the surface, pushing up the sod while searching for its primary food source of earthworms and grubs.
These surface tunnels are temporary feeding routes, often winding and erratic as the mole follows scent trails to locate food. They are easily identified because the soil beneath the raised ridge feels spongy or soft when stepped on, causing the ground to give way. Unlike the deep tunnels marked by molehills, these surface runs are generally used only once or a few times before being abandoned.