Voles drive gardeners and home owners crazy! You’ll know voles by the snakelike tunnels all over your lawn. Here’s advice on how to identify, prevent, and control your vole population.
What’s the Difference Between a Vole and a Mole?
First off, voles are not moles! People confuse the two animals because they both tunnel through your yard. You might not have seen either critter since they’re usually underground, but they look very different. Voles (Myodes) are small, stocky rodents similar to field mice. In fact, a vole might look like a mouse at first glance. In contrast, moles are NOT rodents. Moles are all nose and mouth. And they have big feet used in digging! See our Mole page.
Voles have small rounded ears that are often hidden by their fur, small eyes, and short tails. Their fur is generally thick and light brown to gray. Two common species of voles in North America are the prairie vole and the meadow vole. Meadow voles are more widely distributed, but prairie voles are more common in prairie areas. They are very similar, and methods for controlling them are mostly the same.
Vole Diet: Plants!
Voles, similar to other rodents, have a mainly vegetarian diet. Voles mainly eat stems and blades of lawn grass—so it’s usually vole tunnels that you’ll see near the surface of the yard. Moles have a mainly carnivorous diet. (Moles are beneficial in many ways. They help plow the soil and eat grubs and insects!)
It’s helpful to know this difference not only because it will help you identify the damage (see below) but also because a vole bait would use peanut butter whereas moles would be more interested in an insect or earthworm.
If it helps, remember that their frenzied activity does subside. Vole populations cycle, and about every 3 to 5 years there will be a population boom. Mild winters with good snowfall can help to increase vole populations.
Photo Credit: Washington State University. Many of the same methods that you use to get rid of mice can be used to get rid of voles; after all, voles are commonly referred to as “meadow mice” or “field mice.”
Reader Comments
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Pesticides & other poisons
I can't understand why anyone would use insecticides, pesticides, herbicides or any other poisons. They kill everything all up & down the food chain, including bees, butterflies, ladybugs, birds, fish, amphibians - everything!!
WHY KILL VOLES
I totally agree with the comments made by MandycP - why do people want to get rid of or kill everything that happens into their gardens? I was so pleased to identify a vole rummaging in my garden yesterday!
Why kill voles
Why do people have this obsession with ridding their gardens of all wildlife! Garden that look like outdoor modern living rooms are not nature friendly and are the reason why we have so many species going extinct....Voles are not a nuisance, they are fellow inhabitants of the planet and are good for other species, we should be doing everything in our power to keep every living species alive. Even wasps are vital to ecosystems. Try putting treats like fruit and grains out for your voles, like we do, they have not eaten, damaged or wrecked anything in our 15 year old cottage garden..we have a completely organic approach. We have mice, voles, a single elderly rat, hedgehogs, sparrow hawks, common lizards, multiple bird species all living happily in our garden. The mice are so used to us, they bring their babies out to meet us. We have a garden full of perrenial shrubs, vegetables, we also run a hot tub, pond electrics, they don't chew, damage or invest anything BECAUSE WE GIVE THEM A PREFERABLE ENVIRONMENT....we give the wildlife WILD space, we pile up wood, leaves to make wild, quiet corners. Stop trying to rid outdoors of everything non human, our survival is at risk because of our attitude to controlling nature
Good way to kill voles
I accidentally found out that voles love to eat Ortho Bug B Gon granules (the dry insecticide). They eat it because it smells like grain, but the poison in it it kills them. I use it to control bugs around landscaping, but started noticing dead voles the morning after I spread it. I even had one come in the garage and gnaw a hole through the bag to eat it and die shortly afterward. Now I just put some granules down around their trails or near their holes and the problem is solved.
Using mouse traps, black oil sunflower seed, & 5 gallon buckets
Ray Lewis - I want to thank you. I don't know how long it will take me to rid my yard of voles, but I tried the technique you suggested and in six days I've caught (killed) nine voles. I have 7 traps and three buckets. On the first and second nights, I only had four traps and two buckets. I caught two both nights, but on the second night, a vole broke one of my traps. So, I bought another pack of mouse traps and added a bucket. The third night, using the three buckets, I caught three voles. The next night I did a bad job of setting my traps and got no voles. Because I was busy, I removed the one thrown empty trap and put the buckets back over the unbaited traps thinking I would fix this when I had some time; however, this morning, I had caught two more voles which brings me to a total of nine.
Ray, I really want to thank you. I will keep this up until I catch nothing and they do not eat the bait (sunflower seed).
Voles...then badgers!
This has been a particularly bad year for voles on South Dakota prairies! As bothersome as they have been, nothing is as bad as the badgers that have moved in! Voles are a particular favorite of badgers! The badgers burrowed into the chicken coop killing more than half of our flock! Had I left my barn cats out, they'd have killed them as well! We have trapped 6 so far and every morning find signs of more! The remaining chickens are now housed in a sturdy shed right by the house and use our large, tightly fenced yard as their own. Not an ideal situation, but hopefully will keep what chickens we have left alive! Help!!
Voles are taking us over!
Voles and snakes, what a combination! Where there are voles, there are snakes. I tried the Havahart which is excellent for mice but the voles ignore the peanut butter bait. We have at least two dozen holes around our house. Mice are also a problem this year in northern Michigan but the Havahart takes care of them. I got 5 in our basement the last couple of days. We get voles, moles and mice every year but this year in crazy. I continue my search for a remedy.
Voles.
I have been fighting voles, gophers, mice, and RATS since moving to this property about 4 years ago. We live in the mid Willamette Valley of Oregon, and are surrounded by grass seed fields, so our mild winters and ample food supply have led to quite abundant populations overall. Since elimination is basically impossible, control is about the best one can do here. I have found that your suggestion of a good cat or dog has been the best one so far.
I have a barn cat, (named Jinx because of the absolute trouble she causes for the little buggers) and she is a VOLE-INATOR. Every morning I find her carnage all over our near-acre farm. Sometimes she eats them, but many times she doesn't. I no longer really care. They are so troublesome this year, and she is working to save my crops, whether she knows it or not.
My other suggestions are to encourage one's local native predators if possible. Fortunately for us, we also have many owls, hawks, kestrels, harriers, and even some ermine, coyotes, and occasional fox that also eat them in large numbers. (Why my poor chickens DO NOT free-range and are confined to a large run with closed top!).
Honestly, the gophers have been harder to control since they are bigger, stay underground and rarely come above the surface, but the Voles have the sheer numbers. That's their survival strategy. Like weed seeds.
Good luck everyone.
Voles
The vole populations in this part of Colorado have been huge. I have tried most of the suggestions in the article. The voles boosted the moth balls out of the holes, they munched on plants and roots right beside the toy windmills, they stayed away from the traps, the electronic devices to scare them away were like a "come and get it" call, pepper flakes liberally placed on and around the plants just made the plants more yummy for them. So as a very last resort, I called an exterminator!
Ultrasonics
I had voles under the exterior wooden porch steps at my new house. I bought 4 ultrasonic gizmos to drive them away. While it did force them to leave, they simply moved 20 feet around the foundation and dug in there.
Voles
Very good information in the article however, both have taken over most of my acreage. One year ago they destroyed my lower lawn. The next year they also destroyed the East Lawn. This year they also destroyed the North Lawn. I am beyond traps and have no idea how to get rid of them. I have never seen them but I know it is them. They tunnel everywhere destroyed the lawn eating the roots. When I try to have a garden they eat the carrots they eat the beets they eat anything under the ground. I never see them I could be a million but I still never see one. I am beyond my wits end.
Vole Protection
I have over 20 years in Horticulture and own a landscape design,build, and maintenance company. I graduated from NCSU and have spent years dealing with Voles. I couldn't find a reliable product to protect new plants or bulbs from Voles. All repellents and noise makers were inconsistent and expensive. I developed, trialed, and released the wire mesh baskets we currently offer after the passed all my test and clients satisfaction. Vole King should be used on all new plantings to provide instant and future protection!!!
vole article
"While the damage may look visible in early spring, it is rarely permanent. Mole activity is heaviest in the springtime in most regions and does subside" adding to the confusion as the last point in your VOLE article. I have extensive experience with pocket gophers and voles. after ridding the grounds around my cabin of pocket gophers by summer the voles move in to the convenient gopher holes... every year. I use Cinch traps for the gophers because nothing else works that is viable or effective... get the smallest ones if you are considering it. When the Voles move in I use Havaheart mouse traps which are only hit and miss. but steel snap kill bar rat traps placed in active sections do the real work. The gophers are the worst from spring to late fall but mostly in the summer unlike your reporting.
Voles
Here in the High Desert of Central Oregon we have both voles and sage rats. Your photo looks like what we call sage rats. Are they one and the same? I have gotten rid of quite a view with the vole poison, but the best way is to shoot them with a BB or pellet gun. Some of the guys here actually go out on a "hunting trip" for sage rats. LOL
voles
I believe sage rats are a type of ground squirrel. Voles look like meadow mice (though they are not rodents). Also, moles are usually more prevalent in early spring when they eat grass stems and start breeding. You’ll see mamas with their babies right around Mother’s Day.
what worked for me
When our NC yard was full of tunnels I ran across a suggestion that work for me. Whirligig flowers, bought at the dollar store. The little colorful flowers on a stick that spin with the wind. The article said that the voles would not like the vibrations underground. I "planted" those around the garden, and affected areas of the yard and it worked!
Voles
Will predator urine cause established vole population to move away from yard to the woods, or does it just repel future vole infestation?
Urine
I have gophers voles and moles...i fill up a water bottle of urine once a month...yes..mine...and edge my flower beds..it is the only place free of damage!
Vole
Would the ultrasonic devices work for voles?
ultrasonic repellers
Some ultrasonic pest repeller devices are meant to repel voles along with mice and certain other rodents. Check the instructions of the manufacturer, and if you are using it outside, make sure that you get one for outdoor use. In general, these devices have mixed reviews as to their efficacy, but it might be worth a try!
The sonic vole deterrent
I purchased a dozen of these solar powered sonic rodent deterrent devices that you shove in the ground for $200 this summer to fight off a vole infestation and I’m sorry to say they were totally useless against the burrowing voles here.
In fact after 2 days I found 2 new tunnels dug right next to one of the devices with their den being literally right beneath one of the sonic waste of money devices.
(And please dont catch and release this horrible disaster on someone elses property. One pregnant female vole can turn into a colony of over 1,000 voles in a single year. They must be killed)
However, if you have a pond with fish, do not place any of these sonic devices within 75 feet of the pond. As soon as i set the sonic devices out my fish started going crazy trying to crowd into the farthest corner of the pond away from the devices. I moved the devices and the fish instantly relaxed.
Utrasonic doesn't work.
I watch this great youtuber. Does nothing but mouse traps and rat traps.
He's tested utrasonic multiple times. They don't work at all.
However peppermint oil was very effective.
Utrasonic doesn't work.
I watch this great youtuber. Does nothing but mouse traps and rat traps.
He's tested utrasonic multiple times. They don't work at all.
However peppermint oil was very effective.
Utrasonic doesn't work.
I watch this great youtuber. Does nothing but mouse traps and rat traps.
He's tested utrasonic multiple times. They don't work at all.
However peppermint oil was very effective.
gophers
no article on them??
I think I have both!
I have the mounds of earth for the moles. I can see the runs in my beds where the voles tunnel while they chew the roots off my plant's. They destroy the plants and do not eat the vegetables. They've destroyed tomatos, eggplants, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussel sprouts, and more, much more. We've tried repellents, poison beans and worms none worked!
Put hardware screen in the bottom of the beds, that worked! Now we have to do the whole garden.
I have two cats out there too. We tried milky spore to get rid of the grubs. Not sure if it's working yet. It takes a while for that to happen.
Hey I'll try peanut butter and the bucket ideas what do I have to loose.
I kid you not, these critters shoved a poison worm back up through the hole I put it in. I think they were trying to tell me something.
moles--> voles
In the last paragraph, you say "moles", I think it should be "voles"?
Shadow the Vole Hunter
I have very few in my yard anymore since I have a cat (Shadow) that will kill every one she gets her paws on. :)
Voles
Whether it's my shady northern exposure or my backyard wildlife habitat with no tilling and lots of groundcovers, I have always had voles everywhere. And I was going to add to your list until I saw the last point--a cat who can patrol the garden and yard. I don't let my cats roam, but one or two go outdoors with me for a time nearly every day when I hang out the laundry and work outside. Once they discovered the garden had voles they decided voles existed as an important supplement to their diet, and the problem was, for the most part, solved. When we haven't been able to go outdoors for a period of time, my work schedule usually, the difference is noticeable. But then they manage to find a way into the basement, so at least the cats still have some environmental enrichment.
Vole elimination
I have been thinking the past few years that grubs are what attracts voles so if I use grub repellent voles won't have anything to come to.
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