Hairy Tailed Mole

Hairy Tailed Mole

Hairy Tailed Mole Tail

Hairy Tailed Mole Vestigial Eye

Hairy Tailed Mole Front Foot

Hairy Tailed Mole Feeding

Hairy Tailed Mole Feeding

Hairy Tailed Mole Feeding

When I was a boy of about six years old, I saw an episode of the old black and white Superman TV series, it could have been the pilot episode- called “MOLE MEN.”  I remember how terrified I was of man-hole covers on the street after that episode, alien creatures that seemed to live in the center of the earth, traveling about by the sewer system etc.  My memory is a bit blurry right now, but I even think this episode is held as one of the best of the old Superman series.  Little did I know that later in life, I’d laugh a bit to myself while tracking real life moles, those furry mammals that defy logic by burrowing easily with a strength that seems to approach Superman’s strength.  Moles are really a super mammal.  In a unique mammal order, the Soricomorpha, that includes the shrews and others, I was intrigued by the fact that many people have never seen a mole up close, or alive for that matter.  To add to the issue, moles it appears are not visually appealing to some people- “They gross me out!” one co-worker stressed.  Then I got thinking.  I myself, had NEVER held a mole, or really examined a mole up close.  I had found a few dead moles in my life on my lawn, or on a hiking path after heavy rains.  But I had not actually gotten down to the moles level.  I solved that problem

The other day I found a fresh mole runway on my lawn.  I tamped down the entire runway (which ran for about 10 feet).  I then came back to check the underground tunnel every 10 minutes or so hoping to notice a new pile of soil, to direct me to a potential photogenic mole representative.  After about an hour or so, out of the corner of my eye I saw a few blades of grass twitch.  I thought to myself “its not windy out” and so, this MUST be a mole making these grass blades wiggle.  Then I saw the earth itself move a bit.  A tiny 1 inch square area, move up and down.  I ran for the large spade.  Got the spade in just below the moving soil, and lifted up a chunk of soil and turf about 12 inches square and about 5 inches deep.  I then plopped the whole shebang into a 5 gallon bucket.  I was having quite a lot of fun at this point.  Lifting up the grass just a bit I saw I hit PAY DIRT (pun intended).  There was an  HAIRY TAILED MOLE, Parascalops breweri.  It was kinda neat to find out that this mole species is the only one it the genus Parascalops, and native to the eastern U.S. and Canada.  A local native mole.  

In that case of our Hairy Tailed Mole, now in hand, I found the front digging feet to be absolutely unreal in size and power.  The animal was almost impossible to hold in any way.  After a while I was able to just drop the mole gently to my hand, and snap an image of the full body.  It seemed to never stop moving.  And they sort-of don’t.  They consume up to 45 grams or more of earthworms and grubs per day, which is about equivalent to their weight of about the same!!  For the power that the mole has, meaning strength to metabolically burrow as much as it does, this high-protein and constant food intake helps maintain its strength.  At night, moles will emerge on the surface of the soil to forage, but not often, owls and fox are waiting for such moments.  I imagine the nose of this mole species, would be covered with sensitive receptors for detecting moving prey.  Prey, by the way, moves quickly out of the way of moles- which I witnessed myself.  Earthworms seem to magically pop out of the ground in front of the hairy tailed mole, evidently sensing the burrowing vibrations.  Human earthworm collectors have mimicked this mole vibration while “grunting,”- which involves rubbing metal to a wooden post inserted into the ground.  It works, and earthworms can be collected by the hundreds when this is perfected (by the humans). 

If you like smooth green lawns/turf, moles are your apparent enemy.  To me and my daughter, they are a creature to delight over.  I’m now on a mission to fully photograph the star-nosed mole, which raises the mole NOSE design to great heights (lengths).  But for that (star-nosed mole live capture) I will have to be a bit more ingenious.  BTW, the word MOLE according to the literature is derived from a Germanic word for (muld/mull/mold) for ”soil.”  Enjoy.  NG.