Moles

[Spartacus]

How many traps do you set when you are trapping? How often do you move them? If they dont catch anything do you move them the next day? If they are rooted out do you move them somewhere else in the same run?
I Just started trapping again myself as they seem to have decided to come out in force at the moment, got ten traps and caught 3 the first day but none the second and hadn't moved any traps despite all of them having had something happen to them (catching one or being rooted out/filled with soil).

 

[TomO]

Sorry cant answer any of your questions but what kind of traps are you using? We seem to have had an invasion of moles and want to try and get rid of them. Thanks. Sorry for hijacking

 

[Penmoel]

I bought some tunnel traps which take a bit more time setting than the claw traps, had a modicum oof success in the spring, often one trap relaid in the same place would catch again. Must make the efort to start laying them again soon

 

[Exfarmer]

You cannot have too many traps
I would think we used to have 100+
I did not use them but. My chap often would catch 25 a day
Sometimes one trap would catch 3-4 per day in the same spot
Others perhaps 1 in a week
Best roll the field first then wait for runs to appear

 

[Mickstup]

We use mainly tunnel traps and move them every couple of days, and move them if they are filled over.

 

[Spartacus]

Sorry cant answer any of your questions but what kind of traps are you using? We seem to have had an invasion of moles and want to try and get rid of them. Thanks. Sorry for hijacking

i have a split of barrel traps and scissor style traps, 5 of each set yesterday (i have more of both though) 1 scissor type caught one and two barrels caught one each.

 

[grumpy]

You cannot have too many traps
I would think we used to have 100+
I did not use them but. My chap often would catch 25 a day
Sometimes one trap would catch 3-4 per day in the same spot
Others perhaps 1 in a week
Best roll the field first then wait for runs to appear

ffs were you breeding them fer yer troosers?

 

[grumpy]

We use mainly tunnel traps and move them every couple of days, and move them if they are filled over.

the smart feckers roll a wee stone in front like a flail sherman,

 

[Exfarmer]

ffs were you breeding them fer yer troosers?

Farming alongside the forestry commission had its disadvantages

 

[DrWazzock]

I only use the scissor traps. I have thirty to use on 200 acres, but I would say it pays to take time to find a main run at a nice depth than to blitz an area with traps at random. I have caught 16 moles over the last fortnight on 16 acres. they have been going crazy this last month. The key to success is to find a main run that they use to come out to the feeding areas, preferably in firm ground near a gateway , fence, hedge or path. Often does not look to be much activity on a main run but they just pop a bit of soil up along it here and there just to maintain it. Care is needed setting the trap to get the claws neatly into the tunnel walls with ring 0.75 inch above tunnel floor. make sure no loose soil in tunnel and test trap by poking trigger with a stick. use an old knife to cut the hole neatly. I put moss down onto top of trap then loose soil. Sometimes it works sometimes it does not. I always leave a trap a couple of days before investigating for a bypass, block or undercut, but if nothing after a week I would move it, unless it's a main run where you have caught something previously in which case lease it a month or two as others will migrate in.

I power harrow a grass field with the levelling board down and the tines just ticking the surface to level it all off after I have been trapping for a bit to get an idea of where they are still active.

For difficult customers such as one that seem to tunnel at random or ones that always dodge the trap, shotgun about 6 inches above twitching hill approached downwind with utmost stealth is only answer.

 

[Penmoel]

At the place near Hawick where Scotsheep was held must have been 2008 I think, there were hundreds of dead moles hung on the barbed wire for all to see , that guy had been succesful with traps

 

[grumpy]

At the place near Hawick where Scotsheep was held must have been 2008 I think, there were hundreds of dead moles hung on the barbed wire for all to see , that guy had been succesful with traps

well of course you know the professionals trap the same mole a few times,

 

[Exfarmer]

well of course you know the professionals trap the same mole a few times,

Good mole that passes through a claw trap twice

 

[DrWazzock]

Farming alongside the forestry commission had its disadvantages

Yes, all of our moles come out of the woods. Normally a woodland creature. Weasel only predator I think.

 

[Jackson4]

I once scoffed the different myths around catching moles, but when you spend alot of time setting traps only to find them filled back in you do wonder if you are wasting time and therefore money! Get a pair of marigolds and rub soil into them. Dont put traps to near a freshly dug hole, just find the main run to it (the moles travel through all the tunnels catching worms all day) I use scissor traps because they are quicker to set in all but the surface runs, which i dont have alot of success with.

Most importantly do a good job of setting your trap... i use a broken tine of my hay rake to find the run, cut a hole with a serrated bread knife to as close to the same size as the trap, clean the run out of ALL loose soil and put 2 fingers in either side of your hole (steady) to clean it out/press the soil down, (make sure the roof of the tunnel hasn't collapsed any) then press the trap down so that runs into the soil abit at the sides so mister mole will hardly know its there, then take the sod of grass you cut out and split in 2 and squash it so you can get half ever side of the trap (ie not behind it to prevent it going of) then cover over everthing with mole hill soil to prevent any drafts, smells or sunlight.
This all sounds abit anal but until they start mating in feb/march the moles arent running through there traps and are canny little beggars.... if they find you out they become hard b*st**ds to finally catch! If you find one filled in, then move the trap, your lucky to catch him in that trap again, put a few more traps in the run and try filling in a trap with loose soil, up to the surface as mister mole thinks a sheep has stud on it and will try to excavate the run and you might catch him.... failing that a shotgun is the only answer! I tried for 3 weeks to catch one super clever mole cause all i have is an air rifle!
I usually set them and check them midday most days unless they aren't near my sheep, or i'm a bit busy.
Oh, moles will use any set of runs no matter whose they are so you might have to come back... i had a field coverd in moles last year were all the old holes were there...within a week or 2 they were all over a 10 acre field. Not as easy catching as new set/runs.
NOTE: If you catch a white mole you need to hassle the taxidermist as a mole in the freezer a) can be mistaken for a sausage at first sight, and b) can cause friction in a relationship

 

[Farfrae]

I know this has been posted previously but well worth a read for anyone who hasn't seen it

http://walcotefarm.fernhillsolutions.net/molecatching/mole_catching.htm

 

[Spartacus]

I once scoffed the different myths around catching moles, but when you spend alot of time setting traps only to find them filled back in you do wonder if you are wasting time and therefore money! Get a pair of marigolds and rub soil into them. Dont put traps to near a freshly dug hole, just find the main run to it (the moles travel through all the tunnels catching worms all day) I use scissor traps because they are quicker to set in all but the surface runs, which i dont have alot of success with.

Most importantly do a good job of setting your trap... i use a broken tine of my hay rake to find the run, cut a hole with a serrated bread knife to as close to the same size as the trap, clean the run out of ALL loose soil and put 2 fingers in either side of your hole (steady) to clean it out/press the soil down, (make sure the roof of the tunnel hasn't collapsed any) then press the trap down so that runs into the soil abit at the sides so mister mole will hardly know its there, then take the sod of grass you cut out and split in 2 and squash it so you can get half ever side of the trap (ie not behind it to prevent it going of) then cover over everthing with mole hill soil to prevent any drafts, smells or sunlight.
This all sounds abit anal but until they start mating in feb/march the moles arent running through there traps and are canny little beggars.... if they find you out they become hard b*st**ds to finally catch! If you find one filled in, then move the trap, your lucky to catch him in that trap again, put a few more traps in the run and try filling in a trap with loose soil, up to the surface as mister mole thinks a sheep has stud on it and will try to excavate the run and you might catch him.... failing that a shotgun is the only answer! I tried for 3 weeks to catch one super clever mole cause all i have is an air rifle!
I usually set them and check them midday most days unless they aren't near my sheep, or i'm a bit busy.
Oh, moles will use any set of runs no matter whose they are so you might have to come back... i had a field coverd in moles last year were all the old holes were there...within a week or 2 they were all over a 10 acre field. Not as easy catching as new set/runs.
NOTE: If you catch a white mole you need to hassle the taxidermist as a mole in the freezer a) can be mistaken for a sausage at first sight, and b) can cause friction in a relationship

So how do you go about finding the main runs?

 

[DrWazzock]

So how do you go about finding the main runs?

Good question. I look for a run starting in a ditch bank which runs out to the feeding areas where there are clusters of random hills in the field. The main run is the length coming from the ditch bank before it starts to fan out in the field.

Also sometimes if you see a very small hill next to a gateway or hard area it means they are just maintaining the run and it is a main run, often going from one field to another or going round an obstacle or boundary. Along a fence or a hedge bank is sometimes a good place. generally they are the main routes from which they branch to the random feeding areas.

 

[Longlowdog]

If you have a canny mole that keeps filling traps place a fresh dead mole in between two traps. They are territorial wee beasties and will rush to attack a strange mole in their run. Don't permit light to filter in to your traps. They may be almost blind but they can detect light and will backfill any trap admitting even a tiny amount. Often shop bought traps need adjusting till the let off is light enough, bend wires on tunnels or file scissor traps till a very gentle effort trips the catch, it makes them a little more difficult to set but it is worth it.

 

[Dry Rot]

I saw where a mole had been working on a roundabout the other day. It had obviously met the curb and followed it -- round and round and round!