How to Identify a Mole or Gopher

This is a mole.

Gophers and moles are two of the most common lawn and garden pests. Many of the treatments to get rid of them work equally well on either, but it's always good practice to know thine enemy. Here are some simple steps to determining whether you have gophers or moles messing with your lawn and garden.

Instructions

1. 

   Examine the actual holes they leave. Both are like little volcanic cones. The main difference is that gopher holes look like Mt. Saint Helens, with the hole decidedly taking up most of one side of the mound. A mole hole has a hole in the middle, just like the model you made in grade school with vinegar and baking soda.

2. 

   Consider your location. To your left if a map of where moles, gophers (and voles) are found in the United States. Moles are in blue, gophers in red. If you live in the Northeast, it's unlikely you have common pocket gophers. If your pest looks somewhat like a gopher but huge and has a brazen disregard for your garden, you probably have a woodchuck.

3. 

   Try to catch a glimpse of your lawn and garden pest. This is awfully hard, but if you do happen to see your critter, compare it to the pictures in this article, to the left and above. Also, gophers tend to be larger than moles with more obvious teeth. Moles are smaller with longer, sensitive noses. If it's moving slowly enough that you can see more than that clearly, it's probably dead so your problem is solved.

Tips & Warnings

• Determining whether moles or gophers are pestering you can help you get them out of your lawn and garden faster.

• Although the photos are cute, don't attempt to pick up a mole or gopher. Even if you're somehow able to catch one, they're wild animals (and they know where you live).

Resources

• Get Rid of Moles or Gophers
• eHow Spring Guide