MOLES

There is a tribe of animals constantly around our country habitations,rnof underground and nocturnal habits, some of which become torpid inrnwinter. All are timid and unobtrusive, and yet have great influence uponrnour welfare; for they check the rapid increase of those worms andrninsects which live and breed beneath the soil, and would destroy therncrops which are necessary to our existence. There are certain andrnconstant characters in their formation, which bring them all under onerngroup, called Insectivora, or Insect-eating Mammalia, by naturalists;rnbut among them are smaller groups of individuals, with peculiarrncharacters, adapted to their different habits.rnrnThe mole is an instance of one of these minor groups; which, with onernexception, has a portion of sight in spite of its reputation for beingrnblind. Its smell and hearing, however, are so acute, that they make uprnfor the deficiency in the other sense, a highly developed organ forrnwhich, would be very much in the way of an animal which makes itsrnhabitation within the earth, and which rarely comes to the surface inrnthe day time. Its fore-feet are largest, and powerful muscles enable itrnto dig up the soil and roots which oppose the formation of itsrngalleries, and which are thrown up as they become loosened. The nose,rnor snout, is furnished with a bone at the end, with which it pierces thernearth, and in one genus this bone has twenty-two small, cartilaginousrnpoints attached to it, which can be extended into a star. A vein liesrnbehind the ear of all, the smallest puncture of which causes instantrndeath.rnrnThe food of moles chiefly consists of worms, and the larvae, or grubs ofrninsects, of which they eat enormous quantities. They are extremelyrnvoracious, and the slightest privation of food drives them to frenzy, orrnkills them. They will all eat flesh, and when shut up in a cage withoutrnnourishment, have been known to devour each other. There is a remarkablerninstance of a mole, when in confinement, having a viper and a toad givenrnto it, both of which it killed and devoured. All squeeze out the earthyrnmatter which is inside worms, before eating them, which they do with thernmost eager rapidity. In June and July, they prowl upon the surface ofrnthe ground, generally at night, but they have been seen by day, and thisrnis the time in which they indulge in fleshy food, for then they catchrnsmall birds, mice, frogs, lizards, and snails; but although when inrnconfinement one was known to eat a toad, they generally refuse thesernreptiles, probably from the acrid humour which exudes from their skin.rnThey, on these occasions of open marauding, are often caught andrndevoured in their turn by owls at night, and dogs by day. They have arnremarkable power of eating the roots of the colchicum, or meadowrnsaffron, which takes such powerful effect on other animals, and whichrnthey probably swallow for the sake of the larvae or worms upon them. Suchrnis their antipathy to garlic, that a few cloves put into their runs,rnwill cause their destruction.rnrnA French naturalist, of the name of Henri Lecourt, devoted a great partrnof his life to the study of the habits and structure of moles, and herntells us, that they will run as fast as a horse will gallop. By hisrnobservations he rendered essential service to a large district inrnFrance, for he discovered that numbers of moles had undermined the banksrnof a canal, and that, unless means were taken to prevent therncatastrophe, these banks would give way, and inundation would ensue. Byrnhis ingenious contrivances and accurate knowledge of their habits, herncontrived to extirpate them before the occurrence of further mischief.rnMoles, however, are said to be excellent drainers of land, and Mr. Hogg,rnthe Ettrick Shepherd, used to declare, that if a hundred men and horsesrnwere employed to dress a pasture farm of 1,500 or 2,000 acres, theyrnwould not do it as effectually as moles would do if left to themselves.rnrnThe late Earl of Derby possessed a small deserted island, in the Loch ofrnClunie, 180 yards from the main land, and as proof that moles swim well,rna number of them crossed the water, and took possession of this place.rnThey are said to be dragged, as beavers are, by their companions, whornlay hold of their tail, and pull them along while they lie on theirrnbacks, embracing a quantity of soil dug out in forming their runs. Thernfur of the mole is very short, fine, and close, and is as smooth andrnsoft as Genoa velvet.rnrnMoles display a high degree of instinct in the skilful construction ofrntheir subterranean fortresses. Their site is not indicated by thosernlittle mounds of loose earth, which we see raised up at night, and whichrnmark their hunting excursions, but under a hillock reared by themselves,rnand protected by a wall, bank, or roots of a tree. The earth is wellrnworked, so as to make it compact and hard, and galleries are formedrnwhich communicate with each other. A circular gallery is placed at thernupper part of the mound, and five descending passages lead from this torna gallery below, which is of larger circumference. Within this lowerrngallery is a chamber, which communicates with the upper gallery by threerndescending tunnels. This chamber is, as it were, the citadel of thernmole, in which it sleeps.rnrnA principal gallery goes from the lower gallery, in a direct line to thernutmost extent of the ground through which the mole hunts, and from thernbottom of this dormitory is another, which descends farther into thernearth, and joins this great or principal road. Eight or nine otherrntunnels run round the hillock at irregular distances, leading from thernlower gallery, through which the mole hunts its prey, and which itrnconstantly enlarges. During this process it throws up the hillocks whichrnbetray its vicinity to us. The great road is of various depths,rnaccording to the quality of the soil in which it is excavated; it isrngenerally five or six inches below the surface, but if carried under arnstream, or pathway, it will be occasionally sunk a foot and a half. Ifrnthe hillock be very extensive there will be several high-roads, and theyrnwill serve for several moles, but they never trespass on each other'srnhunting grounds. If they happen to meet in a road, one is obliged tornretreat, or they have a battle, in which the weakest always comes offrnthe worst. In a barren soil, the searching galleries are the mostrnnumerous, and those made in winter are the deepest, because the wormsrnpenetrate beyond the line of frost, and the mole is as active in winterrnas in warm weather.rnrnThe females have a separate chamber made for them, in which they bringrnforth their young. This is situated at some distance from the citadel,rnand placed where three or four galleries intersect each other. Therernthey have a bed made of dry grass, or fibres of roots, and four or fivernyoung are born at the same time, which begin to get their own food whenrnthey are half grown.rnrnLike all voracious animals, moles require a large quantity of water,rnconsequently their run, or fortress, generally communicates with a ditchrnor pond. Should these dry up, or the situation be without suchrnresources, the little architect sinks perpendicular wells, which retainrnthe water as it drains from the soil.rnrnMoles shift their quarters according to circumstances, and as they swimrnwell, they migrate across rivers; and in sudden inundations are able,rnnot to save themselves alone, but their young, to which they are muchrnattached. The stratagem and caution which they practise in order tornsecure a bird are highly curious: they approach without seeming to dornso, but as soon as they are within reach of their prey, they rush uponrnit, tear open its body, thrust their snout into the intestines, andrnrevel in their sanguinary feast. They then sleep for three or fourrnhours, and awake with renewed appetite.rnrnAll mole-catchers will bear testimony to the rapid movements andrnconsequent difficulty of catching these animals. I have watched arngardener stand for half an hour by one of the little hillocks of loosernearth, which, from its movement, showed that the mole was there at work,rnand remain motionless, spade in hand, and when he saw the earth shake,rndash his weapon into the heap. The mere uplifting of his arm wasrnsufficient, and before the spade could reach the ground the mole wasrngone. He could scarcely reckon on securing his victim once out ofrntwenty efforts.rnrnNo moles are found in the north of Scotland, or in Ireland, which somernattribute to soil and climate; but they exist in other parts of Europernunder similar circumstances.