Unidentified holes in the lawn

Lulu999 · #1 (**permalink**) 05-02-2009, 04:13 PM

Dear All,

This is my first post, so be gentle.

I've got a increasing problem of unidentified holes appearing in my lawn. I first started to notice them last year when there were only a few. I've now got upwards of a couple of dozen of them. They vary in size from about an inch in diameter to three inches in diameter. There's no spoil around them and they appear very neat and round. I live in southern England in a very rural area with only farmland around me. They're not in just one location but spread over an acre of lawn.

Does anyone have any idea what might be down these holes?

Thanks in advance.

Lulu

Wild-Woman · #2 (**permalink**) 05-02-2009, 04:39 PM

Just having a guess here. Perhaps a Common Shrew. It looks like there are trails through the grass.

Dogs · #3 (**permalink**) 05-02-2009, 05:25 PM

If im doing mole work, and I see this, it means there is a vole present in the disused tunnels, and this means that the mole dosent live there any more... if he was there, the vole would have been discharged and the holes filled.

camo · #4 (**permalink**) 05-02-2009, 05:41 PM

On the first two pictures the grass looks to have been grazed giving a fine lawn effect which would suggest Vole.

Roy

Dogghound · #5 (**permalink**) 05-02-2009, 08:59 PM

The fact is it could be either a vole, a shrew or a wood mouse. Woodmice often leave spoil heaps but not always if digging from below. Shrews often have oval shaped holes but the runways do look shrew like to me. but also looks like a lawn like camo said.... Who can really say for sure, you will have to watch it closely.

ron1863 · #6 (**permalink**) 05-02-2009, 10:32 PM

I would go for shrew as we have loads of similar holes on our river bank and some of the old unused ones are inhabited by bees in summer.

The Woodman · #7 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 07:07 AM

I think voles are the culprits Lulu999. There are two similar holes on my lawn and I spend far too much time trying to spot one. You can see the grazing tracks developing in the image on the right. Voles, being fairly nervous, progress these tracks during grazing and I think they help enable the vole to make a hasty retreat to its burrow when alarmed.

smartie · #8 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 08:45 AM

Nothing to add to the experts' views, Lulu, but welcome to WAB. We're often gentle and usually fairly civilised, so why don't you stick around and get to know us?

lstarr · #9 (**permalink**) 12-03-2010, 05:29 PM

Hi Lulu,

Snap!
I have had a mole in my garden for several years. Last summer I found it dead on my drive. I was glad as it had been making a real mess in my garden. I thought another one had taken its place as recently I have found lots of holes the same as yours. I have been told its voles. I have looked them up and it seems if you have a pregnant vole turn up in your garden within a year you could have 50! The problem I have, the holes are by all my plants and they are causing damaged.

Lucie