| That's quite a mystery! You may have to put on your detective cap to figure out who's responsible! Could be voles, squirrels, chipmunks, rats, skunks or raccoons. Voles are small rodents, also called meadow mice or field mice. They do not hibernate, so they may be seen any time of the year. They construct surface runways as well as underground tunnels and eat a variety of plant material. Tunnel entrances are 1 to 1? inches in diameter and no mound of soil is present. Tree squirrels will bury and dig up nuts in the lawn. Holes are typically 2 inches in diameter, shallow and there is no mound of soil around them. Entrances to chipmunk tunnels are usually found in less conspicuous places such as near stumps, buildings, brush piles or log piles. They are about 2 inches in diameter. Entrances to rat tunnels are also found in less conspicuous places such as near shrubbery or wood piles. They are as large as 3 inches in diameter. As moles create deep tunnels, or encounter roots, rocks or hard to compress clay soils in shallow tunnels, they push the excess soil out of the tunnel and to the surface. These so-called mole hills can be from 2 inches to 24 inches tall and are volcano shaped. Over time, they may flatten and become a bare area. Damage from skunks and raccoons occurs at night. They dig holes in lawns and gardens, looking for grubs and other insects. The holes are typically cone-shaped and 3 to 4 inches wide, but the area disturbed may be as wide as 10 inches. Both of these rascals have been known to peel back newly laid sod. Hope this information helps you determine just what kind of wildlife is making holes in your lawn. |
