Mole - description, photo, types, how to get rid of it, methods of fight. Mole - external features, habitat, nutrition, reproduction

The mole (from the Latin Talpidae) is a small mammal from the order Shrew-like (from the Latin Soricomorpha), the mole family.

The body size of this animal reaches 20 cm. The carcass ends with a small tail. Animal mole has four limbs, and the front ones are much more developed than the back ones; they are used for digging underground passages, and therefore have the appearance of shoulder blades turned to the sides.

Due to this arrangement of the front limbs, this animal looks quite funny, which can be seen on photo of animal mole.

The head is conical in proportion to the body and is of medium size without ears and a slightly elongated nose. The eye sockets are very small, and the eyeballs themselves do not have lenses.

There are movable eyelids. In some species, the eyes are covered with skin. The mole is blind, he doesn't see anything. But in contrast to the lack of vision, nature has endowed these animals with excellent hearing, smell and touch.

The color scheme of mole fur is monochromatic, most often black, sometimes dark brown or dark gray. The fur grows strictly perpendicular to the skin, which makes it easy to move underground both forward and backward. Moles change their fur (molt) up to three times a year from spring to autumn.

After reading this article you will have a more complete understanding, what animal is a mole and watch the video and photos of this nimble little animal.

The mole family is divided into four subfamilies, such as:

Chinese moles (from Latin Uropsilinae);
(from Latin Desmaninae);
New World moles (from Latin Scalopinae);
Old World moles (from Latin Talpinae).

These subfamilies are further divided into more than 40 species. In the vastness former USSR six species live: small and large mogera, , small, Siberian and common mole.

The photo shows an ordinary mole

The habitat of moles is all continents, but for the most part they live in Europe, Asia and North America. Mole underground animal. It settles in areas with loose soils, mainly forests and fields, in which they dig their homes, passages for collecting and storing food and burrows for offspring.

Feed drifts lie over vast areas and are usually located at a depth of three to five centimeters from the surface, in winter period a little deeper.

The hole for hibernation and nesting is always much deeper and is located 1.5-2 meters underground. Moreover, this hole always has several entrances and exits.

Mole nutrition

Moles are insectivores, the basis of their diet is earthworms. They collect them in feeding passages, and the worms themselves crawl into these holes, attracted by the smell secreted by the mole.

Mole is mammal animal, leading a 24-hour, year-round lifestyle. It feeds 3-4 times a day, eating about 20-30 grams of worms.

After feeding, the mole moves to the nesting hole and, curled up in a ball, goes to sleep for 3-5 hours, after which it again begins to search for food.

If an animal finds more worms than it can eat, the mole takes them to special storage places, a kind of storehouse, after first biting off their heads, and returns to eating them after waking up.

Reproduction and life expectancy of a mole

Moles are solitary animals; they pair up only during the breeding season to procreate. By the age of one year, moles reach sexual maturity.

The breeding season occurs once a year in early spring. The female prepares the nest alone for the brood; the male does not participate in this.

Forty days after conception, small, completely hairless cubs are born. There are usually about five of them in a litter, less often it reaches 8-9 individuals.

In the photo there are baby moles

For a month, the offspring stay with the female, who brings them food and cares for her children. Subsequently, the young leave the female’s burrow and begin to build their own home. If the young brood does not leave the nest, then the female may even bite it, thereby driving it into independent adult life.

How to fight moles

By making underground passages, the mole, for the most part, benefits nature by loosening the soil, but when it settles in areas cultivated by humans, it causes more harm.

In their gardens and summer cottages, people try to get rid of this animal, because with its digging it damages crops, harvesting, and especially spoils garden trees, exposing their roots.

Let's try to figure it out how to deal with moles in the garden. From the above animal mole descriptions It is clear that this animal has a well-developed sense of smell and hearing, so in order to drive it out of the garden, you need to use this knowledge.

Firstly, we all live in a civilized world during the widespread development of electrical engineering and, based on this, modern companies producing various devices offer us the use of devices that will scare away various animals, including moles, from your garden with sound and ultrasound. .

This method is the simplest and will only require you to finance the purchase of such a device. But it’s also quite possible fight moles with folk remedies– the simplest thing is to use the moles’ sensitive sense of smell against themselves, namely, it is necessary to soak a rag with a strong-smelling agent, such as ammonia or mothballs, and put it in the molehill.

The smell will drive the mole away from this place. Another method to get rid of an annoying animal is a regular windmill with empty cans placed on it to create as much noise as possible.

You can also stick metal rods into the ground to a depth of 0.5-1 meter and hang the same cans on them, which, under the influence of the wind, will knock on the rod, thereby creating a loud sound and vibration, which the mole does not like so much.

All the methods of fighting moles described above cannot guarantee that after some time these animals will not return to their original place.

Therefore, it is recommended, after you have driven this mammal out of your area, to create a mechanical obstacle to their penetration, namely, dig a chain-link mesh around the perimeter to a depth of 0.5-1 meter or build some other insurmountable barrier.

A mole is an animal whose description is often found in newspapers and magazines on various topics. This is not surprising, because in our area this animal is often found. Since childhood, many remember the mole as a popular fairy tale character. Perhaps the first thing that comes to mind even for adults is the fairy tale “Thumbelina,” where the animal appears before us in the form of a thrifty owner.

IN real life Moles are small animals that live underground. Their peculiarity is the lack of vision. However, this is not a defect at all. If moles had a normal organ of vision, they simply could not spend their entire lives underground. Also, moles do not have ears. And this is not just like that.

The pressure present in them would prevent animals from constantly staying underground. As seen,
the body and all vital systems are arranged in such a way that the only habitat can be a dungeon. And the moles’ home itself is a complex system of tunnels. Even scientists who study the habits of the animal are surprised at how intricate paths moles dig for themselves.

The fact that moles are blind does not mean they lack vision. They have eyes, but they are very small and completely covered with fur on top. And in some species, the eyes are completely hidden under the skin. The fur of moles is short and soft so much that it is pleasant to touch. However, the fur of animals also has its own peculiarity. It can easily fit into different sides. If the fur of moles did not have this property, it would be difficult for them to move through their underground tunnels with such ease.

The average length of moles reaches from 13 to 16 cm. It depends on the type of animal and its habitat. Half the length of the mole is occupied by the head and tail, which are the same size. The fur color is black, and in some species it is dark gray, sometimes with a blue tint.

Where is it found?

The habitat of moles is Russia, especially its West, Siberia, the Urals, Eurasia and America. How did such small animals manage to “capture” such big environment a habitat? Everything is explained by their underground way of life, which often saves them from enemies, external irritants, and even such a primitive factor as weather is practically indifferent to moles.

As for the territory of residence itself, which the animals choose for themselves, it is selected carefully. Moles will not live in sandy soil, they also avoid swampy areas. The most favorable for them is in moderation wet soil with soft ground. It is in such an environment that it is easiest for animals to dig holes, and it is this activity that takes up most of their lives.

By the way, to determine the place where the mole has settled, you do not need to have special knowledge. It can be easily identified by small mounds, which consist of earth, which the animal pushed to the surface in order to make room for the next tunnel. Mole holes are often found on the river bank, because the animals are excellent swimmers and can swim as freely as they can dig underground.

Danger to people

The mole does not pose any direct danger to humans. Consider several aspects in which they can cause minor harm; most often, the activity of moles can negatively affect the summer cottage.

This is due to two factors:

by processing the soil during tunnel digging, animals mix a highly fertile surface with a low-fertile one;
moles eat a large number of earthworms, which themselves have a beneficial effect on the soil.

All this leads to the fact that the soil is slowly becoming depleted and may simply become unsuitable for some types of plants that previously grew well and bore fruit.

How to get rid

When planning to get rid of moles, driving them out of your area once and for all, you should understand that this is not so easy to do. In some cases, you have to spend more than one month to say goodbye to unwanted guests.

Let's look at several effective ways.

If the owner of the dacha is patient, then you can get rid of moles using gentle methods. For example, you can take care to reduce the level of soil moisture for a certain period. Then the animals will simply leave your site and go looking for new housing.

The common mole is one of the most interesting animals that can live on a farmer's territory. Despite the fact that these animals create problems for gardeners by digging underground complex systems moves, they also bring certain benefits. Therefore, we will tell our readers in more detail about the life functions of moles, their habitats, what they eat, as well as their benefits and harms to humans.

First of all, you need to know what a regular mole looks like so that it can be recognized among other burrowing animals.

The common or European mole is a small, fluffy animal with an elongated, slightly rounded body and small eyes. His entire body is covered with thick, velvety and smooth fur. His fur has one unusual feature– the pile always grows straight and does not have a specific direction, as is the case with almost all mammals. This feature allows the mole to easily move underground in different directions without creating discomfort for itself. Moving in different directions, its coat freely changes the direction of the pile, lying forward or backward.

Mostly moles have a uniform coat color. It can be dark brown, dark gray and black.

Typically, this animal molts three times a year. He changes his hair coat once a season, except in winter, when he needs to keep warm. This frequency of molting is explained by the fact that the animal loses a lot of fur, constantly moving through narrow underground passages. Due to the constant friction that occurs when it comes into contact with the ground, its coat thins or falls out.

Since this animal spends most of its life underground, where it does not go sunlight, then he sees practically nothing with these eyes (they do not have a retina or lens in their structure). But the mole has a very developed sense of touch and smell. Using these senses, he is good at navigating underground, and is also able to avoid the threat posed by larger predators.

The common mole has a small mass. On average, its weight is about 100-120 grams. The body length usually reaches 16-18 centimeters, and the tail length is 2-4 centimeters. As expected, males are slightly larger than females.

Since the mole adapted to life underground for quite a long time, it developed a body shape characteristic of burrowing animals. Thanks to it and its paws, it is able to move quite quickly under thick soil and at the same time hunt insects. The mole has short but powerful front legs. They are spade-shaped, wide, and large. They are positioned palms forward to make it easier to rake the soil in front of you. They also have large claws to improve traction when digging and moving through tunnels. Its hind limbs are of a different shape, and are inferior in strength to the forelimbs.

On its small muzzle, the mole has an elongated nose that looks like a proboscis. He has no ears at all. Outwardly, you may not notice the clear outlines of his neck.

The structure of the skull is conical in shape with thin cheekbones. Throughout its life, it can grow up to 44 teeth, depending on the species or genus of moles.

Video “Appearance of a mole”

From the video you will learn what this animal looks like.

Habitat

The European mole is most often found in Europe and western Asia. Other species of this animal have reached large populations in America, Canada, and northern Mexico.

U common mole It turned out well to populate the right bank part of Ukraine. Often found in Polesie, the Carpathians, forest-steppe, as well as in river valleys.

When it comes to choosing a place to live, moles are not too picky. Of course, they try to choose an area that has fertile soil and is also sufficiently moist (but not swampy lands). In such conditions there is always a sufficient amount of vegetation, and, accordingly, insects on which they feed. The soil in open meadows and fields, and in deciduous forests is excellent for housing.

Since man himself creates very comfortable conditions for the life of moles, they often move to the fields where farmers grow crops. Here the soil is always loose, as this is important for plants, it is sufficiently moist, and there are significantly fewer large predators that hunt moles near people ( wild cats, foxes).

These animals spend most of their lives under the soil, creating networks of complex narrow passages for themselves. They are usually found at a depth of 5-7 centimeters, and can reach up to half a meter from the surface.

The common mole is also a remarkable swimmer; its passages sometimes end at the river, so it will not be difficult for him to get to the other side. But on the surface of the earth it is very difficult to see it, because its legs are not designed for walking, and crawling, it becomes easy prey for foxes, martens or eagle owls.

Nutrition

Since the mole spends his normal day digging underground tunnels, he spends a lot of energy and calories that need to be replenished. When conducting normal life activities, with a large expenditure of energy, the animal must eat more during the day than it weighs. The optimal amount of food consumed is twice the mole's weight.

Prolonged starvation is guaranteed to lead to the death of the animal. For this reason, a mole cannot spend more than 17-19 hours without food.

Since this animal is small predator, it feeds on invertebrates. Typically, earthworms, insect larvae and pupae, insects and beetles themselves, small spiders, centipedes, snails and similar fauna are eaten. If a mole encounters mice or small lizards in the ground, he will also eat them. These animals are active for all year round, so they have to constantly look for food. And the search for food in such quantities always requires the discovery of a new territory.

Reproduction

The description of the reproduction method is quite simple. The reproduction process is the same as in most mammals.

However, first of all, moles create a nesting chamber, which is lined with dry grass or moss. Dry leaves can also be used to insulate the nest. They are usually placed at a depth of more than one and a half meters underground. Most often they are found under the rhizome of a tree or dense shrubs. Thus, the nests are protected. Sometimes they can burst out under dry stumps or even private houses (or other human structures).

The female is pregnant for 40 days, giving birth to three to ten cubs at a time. From the first days of life, they still do not have thick fur, and they are helpless. However, babies are able to grow very quickly, and will soon begin to look for food themselves. In a few weeks they can already be 10-12 centimeters long (a little more than half the mother’s body). Then they leave the nesting chamber on their own and begin their independent life. Already at the age of two months, young moles begin to dig shallow tunnels.

Benefits and harms

If moles have appeared on the territory, then some signs will indicate this. Small hills will appear on the surface of the earth for some time. These are places where the animal has dug a tunnel to the surface. But they do not have an open hole, since they bury the exit with a small layer of soil so that there is no draft of cool air in the burrows.

Usually the presence of a mole means that they will dig heavily into the soil where the crops are growing. In this regard, plants begin to lose contact with the ground, which leads to a deterioration in their nutrition. The plant receives less moisture, minerals and other nutrients, so they gradually begin to wither.

A mole is a mammal of the order of insectivores. The habitat of the common mole has very widespread. It can be found in almost all regions of the Russian Federation, Ukraine and Belarus.

It lives in dry meadows, forests with deciduous shrubs and birch trees.

Most often found on forest edges, slopes railway tracks, thawed areas, clearings, forest clearings and roads that well lit by the sun.

He can apply irreparable harm vegetable garden at the dacha, garden, greenhouses, parks, arable land with cereal crops. The mole does not like continuous forest plantings coniferous trees, hills with sandy soil, marshy areas, floodplain meadows.

Does not like soil on which shrubs or trees with a strong root system. He prefers humus chernozem with moderate humidity.

In such soil you can find insects, larvae and worms. The chosen location depends on the temperature factor.

The greater the temperature changes– the closer the animal gets to the forest.

Moving from the lowlands to the top, moles find the most favorable and sun-warmed habitats.

Important! If in winter time the ground freezes and becomes crusty, and the animal may become trapped. Moles often die in winter due to severe weather and lack of food, since they are only in upper layers soil. At this time, earthworms and insects descend into the deepest soil horizons.

Lifestyle

This mammal is a solitary animal. When meeting another male, a fight occurs, which lasts until the death of one of the moles. After this, it ends in cannibalism.

Entire lifespan the mole leads underground Lifestyle. The diameter of the burrows is 4-6 cm. Residential passages lead from the main nest to a watering hole.

The source of water is rivers, puddles, drains, ponds, lakes, ditches, and swamps. For hunting, the mole digs feeding tunnels. Can dig 10-20 m in 24 hours.

The nest is covered with forest moss or thick grass. The total length of the burrows is 1.0-1.5 km.

Photo

If you don’t know what a mole looks like, then a photo of the animal will clearly show you what it looks like:

Description of the animal

Helps him move through dug tunnels cylindrical, shortened, dense body. It is slightly pointed at the front and rounded at the back.

The front part is much better developed. The animal has 6 main species and 11 different varieties. They differ in the structure of the jaw, skeleton, their weight, and size.

Young individuals differ from older mammals in the silvery hue of their skin. The mole has practically no neck. The head seems pulled into the shoulders.

The body smoothly touches triangular head. On the head there is a proboscis, along the edges of which there are vibrissae. Thanks to these sensitive hairs, the animal finds food.

The mole's forelimbs are wide, everted, have a shovel shape. Initially the paws are silver-black. Over time they begin to fade.

There are 5 tightly pressed toes on the feet. They are connected by thin membranes. The claws are elongated, strong, slightly flattened. They reach 10 mm in length.

The hind feet are unwebbed, but with very sharp, elongated claws. The animal has 44 teeth, 2 of which are well-developed upper canines. In adult moles, the fangs are severely worn out.

The size of a male mole from proboscis to tail can reach 115-200 mm, females - from 105 to 145 mm. The weight of males is 90-100 g, females - 60-80 g.

Sense organs

The eyes are small and very poorly developed and almost completely tightened skin. At the mole's no ears.

The auditory openings are also covered with skin. But the animal’s hearing is remarkably developed.

Which sense organs are better developed in a mole? Available to him frequency sound conductivity of soil. The sense of smell is well developed. By smell, he finds food in the ground.

Tactile hairs are distributed throughout the body. Thanks to them he feels worms located 50-70 cm from him.

Also an integral part is a 2-centimeter tail, which is covered with hairs. When the mole lifts his tail up, he feels the ceiling of the dug tunnel. If he does not feel the ground, he returns to his hole.

Nutrition

Mammal feeding only animal food. The main food is earthworms and small insects, vertebrates.

Reference: IN wild conditions Moles can feed on mice, rats, frogs, and ants.

The metabolism of this mammal is very fast. Therefore, the mole have to eat a lot of food. During the day, the animal eats food equal to its own weight. To live, males need 145 grams of food, females – 80 grams.

If the animal is hungry, it can eat on the surface of the soil. But in most cases, moles take their prey into dug holes. The animal's stomach can hold 20 grams of food.

In 30 minutes, a mammal can eat 35-45 grams of earthworms. After 5-6 hours, the mole eats the same amount of food. After that for 3-4 hours he goes into hibernation, after which the search for food begins again.

Important! Plant food is not food for moles. If plant particles get inside, they end up there randomly or from digestive tract earthworms.

Several factors influence how many years a mole lives:

Diseases and attacks of pests and insects;
Living conditions, temperature changes, soil freezing;
Meeting with enemies - fox, marten, eagle owl;
Cannibalism between one subspecies;
Nutrition, hunger strike, food shortage.

How long does the common mole live? favorable conditions? Average duration The life of the animal is 4-7 years.

The mole is an insectivorous animal. The life of a mole passes in holes on the edges of the forest, on garden plots, clearings and roads. The weight reaches 100 grams.

During the day he eats food equal to his own weight. It hides its nests from people, predators and other males. At good conditions can live 7 years.

Video

In the video you can see a common mole on the site:

Even small children know that this animal does not see anything. Older people know that the common mole is a soil mammal. In this article we will look at how this little animal lives, what it eats and what it does.

Common mole. Description

Representatives of this species can live in forests, fields, steppes and meadows. The European or common one (Talpa europaea) is often found. Where he lives is always dark, which is why he has no eyes. Although some individuals have small organs of vision, the only function of which is to distinguish light from darkness.

How did it initially become known that the common mole is a soil animal? People were prompted to this idea by piles of soil on the surface of the earth. These are the so-called molehills. While watching them, we discovered this animal. Later, while studying it, the person determined that the mole had no vision. At the same time, the animal has developed other senses that make it possible to use smell, touch and hearing to a significant extent. His ears are located inside.

Special constitution

The common mole is a small animal, only 10-20 centimeters in length. There is a tail located behind its body. Its length is 2 centimeters. In addition, the structure of the body also allows the mole to move underground without interference. Its skin is covered with smooth, short fur, pleasant to the touch. It does not interfere with turning and backing in dark passages, due to the fact that it grows upward and not backward. Most often, the animal has black fur, although sometimes there are exceptions in the form of ash or brown shades. But still, the fur is not immune from damage. After all, a mole has to move in a confined space.

Reverse stroke

In order to restore hair in time, these animals shed 3-4 times a year. They acquire the most beautiful fur after the autumn molt, which begins at the end of October. In winter it grows taller and thicker, and in summer “relief” sets in again and the coat becomes shorter and thinner. The animal's muzzle is elongated and covered with sensitive hairs.

It is known that the common mole can “walk” backwards. It has this ability thanks to the vibrissae growing on its tail. He has a special tool that makes movement easier. The common mole digs underground passages using its paws. If you look at it closer, you can see that they are wide, powerful, equipped with strong claws. The mole works with these “shovels”, moving in endless underground tunnels.

Prose of life

Nutrition

The mole is called a pest because, moving underground in vegetable gardens, it gnaws the roots of plants, which then die. But it is a mistake to think that this animal eats greens. He is far from a herbivore. ordinary? He is an insectivore. The mole eats all representatives of invertebrates that come across its path: mollusks, larvae, worms, slugs, centipedes, woodlice. It happens that he gets lizards, mice and frogs. This little guy is a terrible glutton. This is not surprising, since small mammals have to eat a lot to maintain body heat. He consumes an amount of food equal to his weight per day (60-100 grams). In winter, he eats what he managed to store.

Increase in numbers

The common mole strives to leave offspring, like any other creature on our planet. For this purpose, the male mates with the female. This usually occurs in March or April. A month later, the female brings forth offspring in the amount of 4 to 9 cubs. Initially, they are not covered with hair, are very small and require constant care. Therefore, the mother stays next to them until the moles reach the age of 1.5 months.

Mole's house

This animal not only crawls underground. He arranges a house for himself, which he covers with dry grass. In addition, the purpose of the moves that the mole makes varies. One by one he makes his way to a watering hole, food and his nest, while others serve as invertebrates. The common mole makes its home at a depth of 1.5-2 meters. Most often, housing will be located between roots or under buildings. There are no restrictions on the depth of passages that form a multi-tier system. If the soil is loose, the mole can go down 100 meters. The “corridors” dug by him are preserved for a long time. If they are not destroyed by other animals or people, several generations of moles can live in them.

These animals work with their paws high speed, so there are a lot of winding passages underground. An obstacle for them is “heavy” soil. The mole has a particularly bad time during drought. It may even die if it fails to crawl through a dried-out area of soil. The common mole makes traps for future food products shallowly. Interestingly, its smell, which repels predators, attracts worms. They crawl into the passages he makes, where they are usually eaten. Other animals, such as mice, also use wormholes. And shrews often penetrate feeding passages specifically to eat worms.

Do nature and people need them?

If such an animal exists, it means there is some benefit from it. Not everyone will be able to determine what it is. Especially those who have summer cottages or lives in his own home. Such people know that a mole is a pest. By making passages, it damages plants that may die. Molehills spoil appearance lawns and lawns. Their activities reduce the amount of nutrients beneficial to the soil. The owners are trying to get rid of such an unpleasant neighborhood. For this purpose, both modern and folk remedies, they try to do everything to make the mole leave their area. But at the same time, this animal eats pests and loosens the soil. This means there is still some benefit from it. The main thing is that he works away from the household plot.

It’s hard to imagine who would have come up with the idea of sewing a fur coat from moleskin. The creator of the first such product probably came up with this idea because of the softness and silkiness of the animal’s fur. Yes, such fur coats look attractive, unusual and exclusive. But they are expensive. Other products are made from such fur. We can say that this is how a person takes revenge on a mole for ruining his gardens.