To the untrained eye, the damage caused by moles and voles might seem indistinguishable – raised tunnels, disturbed soil, and patches of destroyed vegetation. However, these two underground dwellers are as different as night and day, and understanding that is crucial for controlling and eliminating them.
This article will help you understand the differences between moles and voles so you can effectively manage their presence in your yard. You’ll learn to distinguish between a mole and a vole, and discover how to protect your precious green spaces from their subterranean shenanigans.
Appearance and characteristics
Moles
Full-grown moles are typically 5-7 inches long with cylindrical, almost sausage-like bodies, They have thick, velvety dark gray to black fur, and their front feet look like wide paddles with striking claws.
Moles like moist, well-aerated, insect-rich soil and usually hang out in lawns, gardens, and wooded areas. They spend the winter and dry summer months in their deeper tunnels searching for food, but they’re active year-round and don’t hibernate. More than that, moles are solitary animals; if other moles intrude on their space, they can become territorial.
Voles
Voles are smaller than moles, averaging 3-5 inches long and bearing a striking similarity to mice. They feature clearly visible small ears, shorter, furrier tails, prominent eyes and regular mouse-like paws.
Like moles, voles are active all year and don’t hibernate. Instead, they tunnel deep to escape the cold winter weather. In snowy areas, they burrow under the snow and run along the lawn, creating runways through your grass.
You’ll likely find lawn damage in late winter or early spring when the snow melts and reveals the criss-cross runways. Voles often explore new open areas thanks to snow cover protecting them from predators.
Since they eat plants, voles often gather under bird feeders to eat bird seed. They also lurk in flowerbeds where they can snack on flower roots.
Detailed comparison
| Moles | Voles |
| Long, pointed snouts | Blunt snouts |
| Small, sharp teeth used to grip and consume their prey | Prominent front teeth for gnawing on plants and trees |
| 4 to 7 inches long | 5 to 7 inches long, with a smaller build |
| Extremely small eyes that are hard to even detect | Black eyes that are more noticeable |
| No external ears | Prominent rounded ears that don’t extend past their fur |
| Blackish-gray fur | Mix of chestnut-brown and black fur |
| Short tails | Longer tails, similar to mice |
What they eat
Moles
Moles are carnivores, with their main diet consisting of earthworms, grubs, centipedes, millipedes, slugs, snails, ants, and beetles. Occasionally, they’ll consume seeds or roots, but this isn’t their main focus.
“Moles are expert diggers that will consume up to 60 to 100% of their body weight in insects, grubs, and earthworms each day,” says Barbara Smith of the Clemson Cooperative Extension. “This equates to a 5-ounce mole eating 50 pounds of its prey in a year.”
Voles
Voles are herbivores with a particular taste for fruit trees, though they won’t hesitate to target other types. Whether the tree is young or mature, they gnaw around the trunk and roots until they cause girdling, disrupting the tree’s ability to absorb nutrients and water.
They also find herbs, fruits, and veggies yummy. Anything from thyme, cherries, apples, and avocados to artichokes, beets, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, lettuce, and spinach is up for grabs. The damage becomes obvious as you’re watering your vegetable garden.
The damage they cause to lawns
Moles
As they dig for grubs, earthworms, and other insects, moles create deep runways below the soil’s surface. “The tunnels are dug at a rate of 18 feet per hour and can add 150 feet of new tunnels in the lawn each day,” Clemson’s Smith says.
Walking over this area, you may see visible ridges and feel your feet sink into the ground. These are surface tunnels that moles dig to forage. They also dig deep tunnels for permanent shelter and winter use or even leave volcano-shaped mounds.
Voles
Voles typically excavate piles of earth, with the entryway into the burrow typically measuring 1 ½ to 2 inches in diameter.
“These opportunists will dig characteristic golf ball-sized exit holes in previously established mole tunnels,” Smith says. “One day a plant will be beautiful, and a few days later, it will have fallen over with the roots gnawed off.”
Typically, voles stay above ground (or close to it). They like to scurry across the lawn and yard, creating two- or three-inch surface runways in the grass when the snow melts in early spring.
But while turf damage is usually superficial and can be repaired over time, tree, fruit, and vegetable damage can be extensive and look like this:
- Gnaw marks about ⅛ inch wide and ⅜ inch long. The gnaw marks appear in irregular patches and various angles on the roots and tree bark.
- The injured tree grows more slowly, looks off-color, and has reduced fruit harvest.
- When the ground is covered in snow, tree damage can appear a foot or more up the trunk. Voles will often take advantage of the snow to explore new areas without the threat of predators.
- Chewed plant stems, leaves, and even flower buds. The edges usually look ragged and irregular, particularly in tender herbs or leafy vegetables like lettuce and spinach.
- Completely dug-up plants.
How to control them
Whether you have moles or voles, you’ll want them gone because they can do a lot of damage. Good lawn maintenance is one of the key strategies you should use because messy, unkempt yards provide good habitat for both.
You can also set up traps near tunnel entrances or use poisoned bait near tunnel openings. Be careful of using poison if you have pets that roam the yard, though.
Here are some other things you can do:
Moles
- Set up pinwheels around your property for vibration and noise that moles hate. Another option is vibrating solar-powered stakes that emit vibrations.
- Water your lawn correctly without oversaturating it. This attracts pests and insects that moles like to eat, thus drawing moles in.
- Encourage natural predators such as hawks and owls and install birdhouses to provide a habitat for them.
Voles
- Keep your yard clean of debris and pruned at all times.
- Don’t grow dense ground covers, as they can be the perfect hiding place for voles.
- Store wood away from vole access and keep outdoor structures well-sealed.
- Mow your lawn to prevent hiding spots and allow for easy vole sightings.
- Avoid placing thick layers of mulch too close to shrubs or trees, as this will attract voles.
- In winter, keep landscaping free of snow to better see a vole attack.
- Wrap sturdy wire mesh (or hardware cloth) around the base of your trees. You can also install landscape fabric or various pre-made tree guards.
- Avoid keeping bird feeders, as the seeds can prove appealing to voles.
- Dogs can hunt critters such as voles roaming your yard, but they may cause more damage digging for voles than the voles themselves. This can include large craters, compacted soil, and worn-out grass.
FAQ about the differences between moles and voles
Voles aren’t aggressive toward people, though they may bite out of fear, and they can carry diseases. So don’t handle them. Contact a pest control company for professional removal.
Yes, moles can carry various diseases, though the risk of disease transmission to humans is low. Some moles-related diseases include rabies, parasites, toxoplasmosis, leptospirosis, and illnesses spread by ticks and fleas.
Voles are generally harder to control because they reproduce quickly and feed on plants, making them more damaging. Moles focus more on insects, so their damage is less severe. That being said, neither pest is a joy to have around, so do your best to prevent them.
Take back control of your yard
From their habitat to their eating habits, moles and voles can differ. If it’s proving impossible to tell them apart, Lawn Love can connect you with a local pest control company to identify and rid your yard of unwanted visitors as efficiently and safely as possible.
And if your lawn is in shambles from tunnels and runways, hire a local lawn care professional to tidy it up. They can aerate the soil, spread fertilizer, mow the grass, and restore balance to your lawn.
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Main Image Credit:
Mole: Petr Bonek | Adobe Stock Free | License
Vole: Sergey Ryzhkov | Adobe Stock Free | License
