Many gardeners constantly complain that they were attacked by mole rats and fighting them became a whole problem. It is necessary to fight them constantly to save your harvest.

Molehill: who is this?

When truck farmers discover on their land plot earth ditches and passages, they first of all think that moles are wound up. But it is not always the case. Mole rats leave the same traces as moles. That's only with this living creature is much harder to fight than mole. What is their difference?

A mole does not feed on crops - it likes insects and worms. But the mole rat is more than a mole and is a representative of the rodent class. Ordinary mole rat in length reaches 23 cm. It has a good appetite and can significantly spoil the harvest. Getting on the vegetable bed, he drags the vegetable he likes to himself in the hole, and only eats the top of the plant, and the rest leaves in the form of a stock for the winter.   The mole rat is able to stock up potatoes, beets and carrots (up to 13 kg). This is a significant problem. Moreover, it is not difficult to imagine what will happen when their reproduction occurs. In this case, the harvest in the garden can not be collected: it simply will not. Naturally, gardeners and truck farmers are asking themselves: what methods can we get rid of this pest?

Solution

For today, there are a lot of ways to eliminate mole rats from their site. However, not all so simple. There is one important nuance. Mole rats are found in nature in two types:

• giant - a rare species listed in the Red Book;

• ordinary - most often he lives in the garden.

The methods of combating them differ depending on which species has settled on the site.

The first method is traps. Struggle occurs through the installation of a variety of traps, traps and crossbows. Be sure, before using this method, you need to find out what kind of mole rats inhabits a particular site. The installation itself is very simple. You need to find a mole hole and severely dig it, at a distance of 30-70 cm you need to dig one more hole and put a trap in it. Then on top of the trap put a piece of plywood, roofing material or sheet metal to cover it. The principle of catch is the following. Molejies hate drafts. When they see two burrows, they will naturally prefer a "covered house". That's so easy to catch the animal.

As a trap, you can also use a pedestrian or make a tunnel at the entrance to the mink and install a container of water there. When a mole rat enters the water, he can not get out on his own. However, this method is rather troublesome and difficult.

The second method is the use of various poisons. This is a fairly effective way, but if a good fodder base is located in the bed for the mole rat, then it can not touch the poison. There are gardeners who put various wastes in burrows, poured with essential oils and kerosene. But even this did not always help.

If the gardener has an electric pump and there is a pond or a pond nearby, then you can try to fill the holes with water. However, if the soil absorbs water well (eg, sandy), then the mole rat will not work.

It is worth noting that these rodents can not stand much noise. If you install self-made rattling and ringing devices, then you can drive away the enemy.

The third method is ultrasonic waves. This method is the most effective. In shops and markets, there are many ultrasonic scarers. Many summer residents speak about them more than well.

In addition, ultrasonic devices operate not only on mole rats, but also on other pests, for example, the bear, voles and moles.

You can select any method or combine them. Wit and patience are the key to a good harvest.

See our ready-made recipes

Methods to combat mole rats

   The size of a mole rump can reach 30 cm,
  and weighing more than 700 grams.

Moley (he is also a blind man) is an animal that resembles a mole, but much more. In the Kuban it is called the "zinc puppy". There is such a legend that Zinskaya shine was given birth to a dog who turned a woman. Hence - WOMEN, and at the same time PUPPY. There is another legend about the fact that Zinsuke is born of women for their sins. And they say that the son of a rich Cossack turned into a son of a rich Cossack, whose father, in order to win a dispute over the fertile field of a poor man, buried his throat in the ground (he had to confirm that the field belonged to his father) ... But this puppy - , not zinsuke. It has a long body, covered with gray short fur, a head flattened and practically without a neck, because the animal spends most of the time under the ground. The tail and eye are not visible, they are hidden under the skin, but the front incisors (teeth) are clearly visible, which protrude far forward. The size of a mole rump can reach 30 cm, and weigh more than 700 grams. Such a small animal, like a giant mole rat, can grow up to 35 cm in length and have a weight of more than 1 kg.

Mole rats are often confused with a mole, but this is far from being a mole. He digs much more branched and deep strokes up to 450 meters long, and the land thrown to the surface, the so-called slepushiny, can weigh a kilogram of 10. The mole has no developed forepaws, like a mole, so he digs the earth with his powerful teeth.

Moley eats roots, tubers, bulbs and other parts of plants, so it damages agriculture and private gardens. Molefish likes to eat carrots, potatoes and onions, some flowers that have bulbous rhizomes, so the harm from him can be quite significant. Catching a mole rat is difficult, because it is constantly under the ground, and rarely comes to the surface. He and his nature are few enemies.

Catching mole rats is the easiest way

Moleflies, when they are young, are not experienced and catch them easier. You can play on the dislike of a mole to such things as a draft. Find a fresh mole rat, it is desirable that the animal in it is still poking around, move a few meters to another mole rat, so that he does not hear you. Dig and bury the course that leads into the depths, after a while the mole rushes to him to bury, as the wind blows into the hole. As soon as he jumped out, cut off the path to the dig for him, and then catch him.

What to do with the caught mole rat? For humane reasons, it's better to take him somewhere far away from your garden and not kill.

Take the mole rat on the hook

   If the mole rat has already become adept at avoiding traps, you can catch him on the hook.

If the mole rat has already become adept at avoiding traps, you can catch him on the hook. Again, the move is broken and a hook is inserted into it. A hook is a wire about 40 cm long, at the one end there is really a hook on it, or two or three, sticking out in different directions, and on the other - a loop with which the hook is fixed in the hole so that the animal does not drag it behind it.

As in the first case, the mole rushes to the exit from the burrow, as soon as he feels a draft, he gets on the hook and tries to run back and gets even stronger on him. When you get to the hole in two hours, the mole rat will be there. Gently pull it out, remove it from the hook and dispose of it. It is worth warning that such an animal as a giant mole rat inhabiting warm regions of our country is listed in the Red Book, so it is impossible to harm him.

We fight with mole rats water

   Prepare in advance buckets of 8 or 10 water, but it will not be necessary to pour into any molehill, but into a hole that leads into the nest.

Pour the mole rat out of the hole with one bucket will not work. Prepare in advance buckets of 8 or 10 water, but it will not be necessary to pour into any molehill, but into a hole that leads into the nest. To determine the right mole rat, look at the ground that is thrown out of it, if the land is mixed with clay, then this is the right mole rat, since the nest is located quite deep in the lower layers of the soil at a depth of more than a meter, and sometimes three.

Features and habitat of the mole rat

Ordinary mole ratIs a mammalian animal that belongs to a detachment of rodents. In the course of evolutionary development, all the organs of this animal have adapted to the underground way of life.

The eyes completely atrophied and lost the ability to see. This is almost the only case in the gratification of rodents, when there was a complete loss of vision.

The lifestyle of these mammals is exclusively underground. Mole riders, as well, dig long labyrinths of moves, and the excess soil that prevents them, they push out to the surface.

In the family of mole rats there are 4 species. Each of them has its own habitat. Animal mole ratchooses for its living steppes, deserts, forest-steppes and the outskirts of forests.

The soil suitable for their habitat should be of moderate density. Clay and sandy soil is not suitable for them. Their habitat includes forest-steppes and steppes of Moldova, Ukraine and Russia. Basically, this is pasture or unraveled land, rich in herbaceous vegetation.

Molehill is digging the earth with his teeth

Mole rinder   in itself a small size. Its length is 30-32 cm. Weigh from 700 g. up to 1 kg. He leads a rather secluded way of life, so few have seen him live. To correct this oversight and to have an idea of ​​the appearance of this animal, we offer to your attention several photo of mole rats.

As can be seen in the image, he does not have ears, his eyes are hidden under the folds of his skin, and the small tail is almost invisible. The limbs of this underground inhabitant are short, and the head resembles a bayonet shovel.

By the way, digs its tunnels mole rat   only teeth, not paws. This happens in the following way, the front incisors of the mammal bite into the soil, and then with the help of a shovel head, shredded clumps of earth are pushed out. The special structure of the jaw and muscles allows you to move the lower incisors and move them forward and backward.

Such work leads to a significant wear of teeth in mole rat. But do not worry, the incisors grow very fast, so without an "instrument" for digging their tunnels, this underground inhabitant will not remain.

By the way, thanks to his work, he not only staves the incisors, but also sharpens them when biting into the soil. Greater sympathy deserve the animal in captivity. They do not have the ability to grind their teeth and sometimes they can not close their mouths because the incisors have grown to huge sizes.

The fur of these giants of their business is very soft, dark in color. The nose is covered with a horny layer of skin. It is this layer that is protective. It protects against various mechanical damages during the ramming of the walls of the burrow.

The nature and way of life of a mole rat

If moles loosen the soil with their front paws, then sandy mole rats   operate with powerful incisors. The heaps of the earth after their activity remain larger than in moles, and reach about 0.5 m.

In the photo, the sandy mole rats

The weight of one such heap can reach 10 kg. On 1 hectare of land there are from 3 to 20 representatives of this species. The most active period of life of these rodents falls on the spring months. In summer and winter they become less active, but do not fall asleep during the winter.

Labyrinths of moves mole rats   giants are special in their structure. Their distinctive feature is the longline system of tunnels. So, the top floor of "such construction" is considered food, it is located at a depth of 25 cm.

On this tier rodents collect food: tubers, rhizomes of plants. On the second floor there are tunnels, summer and winter nests and storerooms. It is more deeply - 3-4 m. In winter, the entrance to these underground galleries is clogged with earth, and the animal lives here until the onset of warm times.

The total area of ​​such labyrinths is 450 m. The number of food pantries in such territory can reach 10 pieces, and the winter reserves are 10 kg. Here is such a resourceful animal.

Lifestyle giant mole ratsalone. The borders of their territory are carefully guarded. Sometimes, the collision of two males ends in skirmishes over territory with a fatal outcome. Lifespan mole rats   is 2.5 - 9 years.

Their activities cause great damage to agriculture. Symptoms mole rat in the garden   - this is the slides of the earth. They not only spoil the aesthetic appearance of the site, but also ruin the harvest.

From these underground animals, maize, legumes, carrots, beets and potatoes suffer most. Only for a day 1 individual can damage 4-6 bushes of root crops.

Moley   settled in on your site, how to deal with it? To get rid of such a pest can be by re-digging the soil. So destroy the feed layers of their moves. It happens that they are frightened off by an unpleasant smell, so you can use special purchased repellers.

One option is to capture mole rat   manually. For this, a fresh entrance to the hole is determined and another entrance is sought. Then a segment between them is unearthed.

In the photo the giant mole rump

This animal does not tolerate drafts, so it will try to eliminate the damage. It is at this moment and it will be possible to catch this pest. To expel outside mole mole rat   it is possible and with the help of water. Find a mound of earth mixed with clay and pour water into the hole nearby.

Meal of mole rats

Mole riders   eat only plant food. They eat tubers, bulbs and rhizomes. To get to the stem, they pull the root so that the whole plant is in their hole. Favorite "dishes" mole rat   are legumes, Compositae and umbelliformes.

Reproduction and life span of mole rat

Mole riders   live alone, but during the breeding season they form family groups. This family includes 1 male and 1-2 females. As rules, members of such families live next door. The male digs the tunnel to his chosen one. It moves to the sounds that the female publishes.

If there are 2 females in group 2, then they take turns in turn. One year is the first, the second is another. Such alliances break down, only in case of death. In a year 2-3 babies are born. This is a significant event in the period from February to May.

The settlement of the younger generation passes in a peculiar way. So "girls" are moved to the upper levels one year after their appearance, and "boys" - for the second year, to the lower floors. Sexually mature individuals they become in 2-3 years of life.

An ordinary mole rat is completely devoid of vision, instead he has tactile hairs, well-developed sense of smell and hearing. This animal is enough for a normal life, during which he almost never sees sunlight. For many land owners, the mole rat has become a real punishment, because he is able to dig up the entire landing area and even affect the stability of the buildings located there.

Few people saw ordinary mole rats live because of their way of life. They are rarely selected to the surface, and their activity increases with the onset of darkness. So, some idea of ​​the size and lifestyle of the animal must be compiled only for the traces left by it. In order to help those who want to learn how the ordinary mole rats live and looks, photos and stories of biologists.

Description of the mole rat

The maximum length of these rodents is 32 cm and their weight is 700 g. They have an elongated body in the form of a cylinder, a short neck, paws and a tail, and a head flattened at the top. The ears of the animals are barely noticeable, and the eyes are hidden under the skin and completely atrophied. The color of different individuals may have some differences.

Short soft wool of mole rats usually looks like a mixture of brown, gray and brown hues in different proportions, sometimes on the head and body there are bright spots. The rodent has a wide nose, usually painted black or brown. At the first meeting with the mole rump the upper and lower incisors are raised into the eye.

Where do ordinary mole rats live

For permanent habitation, an ordinary mole rat usually chooses a steppe or forest-steppe for himself. He likes to settle near beams, along roads dividing fields, and forest roads. It can be found in Russia, Ukraine and Moldova. In the northern part of the range the mole rat is considered rare, although it is the most common species of its kind, which also includes sandy, giant, Bukovina and Podolsky mole rats.

At the moment, the conservation of the species is threatened by plowing of land, measures to improve the properties of the land and protect plants. Meanwhile, it can not be said that this species is on the verge of extinction. Anxiety among the relevant organizations arises only about the conservation of populations in some northern and southern zones where the common mole rats live. The Red Book of the International Union for the Protection has it on its lists. In view of this, trapping animals in certain zones is prohibited, and human actions in their native habitats are limited.

How do ordinary mole rats live

An ordinary mole rat, in short, his whole life, and this is an average of 2.5-4 years, is underground, digs complex tunnel systems and extracts food. Most of all the animal likes roots, tubers and bulbs of plants, but can also eat a stem with leaves. About 10 kg of provisions must be prepared for the mole rat for winter. At this time of year, his vital activity is noticeably reduced, but the rodent does not fall into hibernation.

The optimal common mole rat is 3 individuals per hectare, but this number can reach up to 20. With the help of sharp incisors and paws, the animals break through a branched two-level system of burrows. The upper tier lies at a depth of 20-25 cm, and the lower one, where the mole rat forms galleries for the nest and food reserves, is at a depth of 3-4 m. The outer holes are not permanent, but are formed only to extract the dug ground .

How does the animal multiply?

The social structure of mole rats is made up of family groups that include one male and one or two females. If the females are two, they give birth in turns in a year. Mating occurs in the spring, and a brood consisting of 2-3 calves may appear, from February to May. Half of the males live apart and do not produce offspring.

The settlement of young animals occurs at a distance of tens or hundreds of meters. Females do this in the first year of life, climbing to the surface, which explains their high mortality. Most often they are the object of hunting birds of prey and foxes. The males are separated from the mother a year later, without leaving the bowels of the earth. The main underground enemy of mole rats is the steppe grouse.

The wolf-animal

Branched underground labyrinths are perfect for the life of mole rats, but they can cause trouble for a person. If a garden or a household plot becomes the habitat of this rodent, you can say goodbye to the lion's share of the crop. Most likely, the animal will like carrots, potatoes and onions. He also likes onion, flowers, legumes, corn and young trees to taste.

Infinite heaps of dug up land, subsidence of soil, the sudden disappearance of planted crops and even small trees - that's what people watch when an ordinary mole rat settles on their land. The description of his sabotage can be continued for a long time, and stopping them is an impossible task for many.

How to get rid of mole rats

Only one question arises when a mole ruffian is planted on a household plot, how to get rid of a pest? For many, this becomes an impossible task. After all, the animal is constantly hiding in the ground and its presence, creating new embankments and destroying planted plants, only at night.

It is best to try to create such conditions that the animal alone left the land. For this purpose, a lot of ways are invented, but none of them guarantees that the animal will run away forever. But still it is worth every effort to get rid of mole rats without spilling his blood.

One of the most commonly used methods is to fill his tunnel with water. But this may require too much water, since the animal's underground passages are very branched. And if the soil quickly absorbs moisture, this method is completely useless. Some try to smoke a four-legged neighbor with smoke, pouring kerosene or fetid mixtures into the hole. Another way is to create on the site of his residence a constant noise, which the ordinary mole rat does not tolerate. Alternatively, an ultrasonic repeller can be used.

Radical ways to get rid of mole rats

When you can not get rid of the mole rat, some resort to a more radical measure - murder. To do this, you can find the animal by opening one of its moves. He does not like drafts, so he will certainly want to close the hole with earth. As soon as he approaches, it will be possible to destroy it.

Another way is to make a hole in the hole and place a trap in it so that the mole rat enters it on the way to the open aperture. It is important that the trap does not have a human smell, for which it is worth it to rub it with potatoes or earth. You can use the poison to kill rodents. But if the plot has something to profit from, the rodent may not have a fucking poisoned food.

Ordinary mole rat is a rodent, which few people saw alive. Underground life with night activity has led to what few know about its existence. Many would prefer to never know about the existence of such an underground resident, instead of seeing how he destroys the growing crops on the site.

To begin with, the mole rat and the mole are different animals, but the harm is brought to the dacha site almost the same.

Moley is a rodent and feeds solely on root crops. For him, carrots, beets, potatoes are a treat.

Discover animals on your garden can be on earthen mounds and deep tunnels, in which you can even fall through. Initially, many people think that moles are the fault of all moles, but there are other pests that are very similar to moles, because they do not see anything.

We learn how the mole rats look and how it differs from the mole. And also the question that interests us: "How to get rid of the mole rat in the garden and the dacha?"

The mole rat is a rodent and a fairly large one of its relatives. Its mass does not rarely reach about 1 kg, and the length of the trunk is 30 cm. The animal has a large and flattened head, the ears are very small, and there is no tail at all.

The hairline is very hard, since long, protruding hairs protrude in the role of touch organs. Instead of eyes, individuals have dense skin folds that resemble closed eyes, but they are not at all.

The mouth of the rodent is tightly compressed, thus protecting the mouth from getting into the ground, but two incisors come out outward, which are very massive and long. With the help of them the mole rider performs all the work under the ground in search of food, digs holes, gnaws root crops.

The paws are very small and slightly developed.

The mole boy practically does not go outside, spends all his life underground.

Habitat

Inhabit mole rats in the forest-steppe and steppe zones, not far from forest plantations and cereal crops. All subspecies mole rats, and this Bukovina, Podolsky, sandy and Pontic are exhibits of the Red Book of Ukraine.

Every year the number of pests is preserved, and they are observed only on the right side of the Dnieper River, as they can not overcome the width of the river.

What feeds on

If your crop is not a crop, then do not blame the mole. It is necessary to decide which cultures disappeared. If it is potatoes, beets and carrots, then this is unambiguous - the matter of the "teeth" of the mole rat.

In addition, the animal does not mind eating onion crops, so flowers that have corms instead of roots may suffer. Eats mole rats and aboveground part of the plant, tightening the bush under the ground.

The favorite herbs for the pest are peas, beans, beans, carrot tops. If the beast enjoyed the grass, then it will procure the root crop for future use.

It is known that an adult is able to eat as much food per day as he weighs himself, so during the excavation of his reserves for the winter, 18 kg of potatoes and other root crops were found in different compartments. Stocks for the winter can be dry berries, nuts.

Differences from moles

And the mole rats are completely different categories of animals.

They have some differences:

1. The mole is an animal of prey, feeds on worms, larvae, and mole rats are herbivores.
2. The mole rat is much larger in size than the mole.
3. The mole has strong and powerful paws, with which he digs underground passages, and the mole rat has short and weak legs, burrows his big teeth.
4. Mole claws are large, and the rodent is practically absent.

The blind animal digs very complex mink, which have many branches and tiers, where the young, the kitchen and the storerooms of the department are located, in which the stocks for the winter are stored.

Methods to combat mole rats

Due to the fact that the mole rider spends a long time in his holes, it is very difficult to get rid of him. But still, the struggle against them is being carried out, summer residents are allowed to use all possible tools.

Poisons

The use of poisonous substances is the most effective way to get rid of pests. This is due to the fact that the poison can be located in the mink.

Poisonous substances are similar to the poison for rats and mice. But there is a problem, the poison is very dangerous for the surrounding people and pets. Also, poison can penetrate into plants, which in the future will not be suitable for food.

You can buy at the veterinary store in the form. Also a poison for moles.

Traps, traps

It should be remembered that if a young or adult is not an experienced individual at least once falls into a trap, the rest will be extremely cautious.

The main thing in catching a rodent is to pick and install it correctly.

1. Detect the most recent mink on its site, clean off the ground until the burrow has appeared. You need to carefully remove it. In the tunnel, a draft is formed, the animal will feel it and rush to fix the malfunction.
2. The mechanical trap must be located inside the mink, about 5-10 cm before the main exit. The chain from the trap must be placed outside.
3. Sprinkle a hole with earth and cover with some kind of material to prevent access to light.

Sometimes the rodent comes across in half an hour, but usually these tricks are ineffective, since the pest has a colossal sense and smell and tries to bypass the traps.

Scarecrowers

As you can use not only store ultrasonic and vibrating reflectors, but also. Among them, excellent results are achieved by tin cans, which are worn on dug sticks. When wind blows, they create noise, crackling, ringing, which the animal does not like.

A molejack, though a blind animal, but his hearing is excellent, when he hears strange sounds he tries to retire from his native place.

Homemade always bring success in the fight against rodents. If you installed one, but it did not work, you can make another, taking into account all the features and habits of the animal.

For self-made devices, turntables, windmills, rumbling in the wind, and frightening beasts, will do. How to make any design can be learned from the Internet, in which experienced gardeners and truck farmers share their advice.

Another, often used, way to etch an uninvited guest out of his lair is water. She needs to fill the hole, until the animal starts to choke and crawls to the surface.

Conclusion

It is known that mole rats do not live in families, so if you managed to drive a pest out of your plot, it may not appear for a long time. But if it appears again, then immediately proceed to its capture, otherwise it will be possible to not find a crop in the fall in the beds.

In conclusion, it should be mentioned that an excellent way to combat rodents is to attract cats and dogs, which are excellent catchers for large and small rodents.