Something smaller than a mole is destroying my english garden... what could it be?

Question

I live in the southeast UK in hampshire and something is burrowing across the garden lawn with amazing speed, it isn't leaving large circilar mounds like a mole does but instead is leaving lines of heaped soil above its tunnels and turning over a lot of clumps of grass. Its only been here for a week and I dread to think what it will do to the garden if i leave it be any longer. Its not only killing the grass but also turning over the soil and causing areas to collapse and upsetting the level of the soil. The tunnels I have uncovered are about 1 inch in diameter so it can't be very big. It has created a series of interconnecting tunnels and larger chambers across the garden but I have yet to get more than a fleeting glipmse of it. What could it be and how should I go about getting rid of it? I dont really want to pay for a trap or poison, is there any kind (ideally humane) trap I can make myself? I've already tried the cat but shes a hopeless hunter.

Answer 1

I'd go with the vole answer. They look like mice, but burrow and eat bulbs and plants.

I've been fighting them for years. Never had any luck trapping them, but poison bait poured into the tunnels worked.

I had a yellow lab that did catch a couple, along with several moles, but then I had to fill in the trenches she dug in pursuit of the little critters, so I'm not sure that was such a great thing either.

Answer 2

could be a vole.

Although voles do spend considerable time aboveground and may occasionally be seen scurrying about, most of their time is spent below ground in their burrow system. The clearest signs of their presence are the well-traveled, aboveground runways that connect burrow openings; the runways are usually hidden beneath a protective layer of grass or other ground cover. The maze of runways leads to multiple burrow openings that are each about 1-1/2 to 2 inches in diameter. The runways are easily found by pulling back overhanging ground cover. Fresh clippings of green grass and greenish-colored droppings about 3/16 inch long in the runways and near the burrows are further evidence of voles. With age, the droppings lose the green coloring and turn brown or gray.


Wire fencesat least 12 inches above the ground with a mesh size of 1/4 inch or less will help to exclude voles from entire gardens. These fences can either stand alone or be attached to the bottom of an existing fence. Bury the bottom edge of the fence 6 to 10 inches to prevent voles from tunneling beneath it. A weed-free barrier on the outside of the fence will increase its effectiveness.

Answer 3

Safely & Permanently Remove Moles, Warts and Skin Blemishes

Answer 4

Tiny Scotsmen.

Answer 5

Get a different cat.