People are reporting lawns ripped up by raccoons, moles or crows. These hungry animals are just a symptom of the lawn's actual problem: white grubs.
The holes dug by raccoons are usually cone-shaped, though the area dug varies. For instance, the animal can also dig a hole under the fence that can be up to nine inches deep. Raccoons are able to burrow through any material.
What is digging in my lawn at night? Moles create tunnels and mounds. Skunks are precise diggers and act as a great natural grub control. They dig little holes and create a pseudo aeration in their quest to find food.
Chipmunks will create a 2-inch-wide hole, usually mounded about 1 inch. Moles create tunnels, but these are always covered by conical mounds. Pocket gophers also make tunnels, but these mounds are large bean-, fan-, or dune-shaped and have a plugged hole. Both moles and gophers live in tightly sealed burrow systems.
The first distinct sign of a rat hole is the size of the entrance. The entrance will be roughly 2-4 inches in diameter and smooth and compacted from the rodents going in and out of the burrow. You'll also notice fresh dirt just out of the entrance in a fan-shape created when the rodents excavate dirt from the hole.
Consider your region and geographic location to narrow down the possible native species, and eliminate any animals that aren't present in your area. Measure the mouth of the burrow and take note of the shape of the dirt around the hole to get a good idea of the size and digging practices of the animal.
At up to 8 inches long, moles are the largest common pest to make visible tunnels in lawns. These pests create feeding tunnels as they seek out earthworm and insect meals. Signs of mole-related lawn tunnels include: Raised tunnels pushed up from just below the surface.
If you notice small holes dug in the area, it may be an opossum. They want to get to grubs and other insects so they dig shallow holes in the dirt. They are not too deep but can still disturb the lawn.
The possum digs just a shallow hole as it tries to get grubs and other insects from the dirt. It will do a little digging in the soil to enjoy eating cockroaches, beetles, worms, snails, or slugs. The hole openings might be at least three inches in diameter.
There are so many different creatures that can wreak havoc on your lawn and garden but none as infamous as the mole, vole, and gopher. These critters can transform a perfectly manicured lawn into a maze of mounds and tunnels that can cause even the most relaxed homeowner an abundance of stress.
Runways in the lawn.
In the spring, when the snow melts, homeowners often find the telltale “runways” of a vole infestation. These runways look like raised tunnels in the grass surface and are formed when voles feed within the turf canopy.
Raccoons and skunks are two common grub-eating nocturnal culprits for digging in yards. Skunks tend to make shallow holes with loosened soil, while raccoons can actually use their front paws to pull up chunks of sod and flip them over to find whatever delicious food might lie beneath.
Squirrels leave holes that are consistently two inches in diameter, shallow, and have little to no surrounding soil. These types of holes are specific to squirrels and differentiate them from other rodents. Squirrel holes are a major sign of intrusion and potentially worrisome for home and business owners.
What Do Chipmunk Holes Look Like? Chipmunk holes serve as the entrance to the animals' underground tunnel systems. The holes are typically one to two inches in diameter. You'll often find these relatively small holes near plants or around the base of birdfeeders.
Generally, holes in your lawn can be caused by animals like gophers, moles, voles, rats, or pest insects such as ground wasps. Burrows can be of various sizes – small holes for insects and larger holes for rodents. In addressing the issue, it isn't enough to fill the hole and hope it doesn't return, because it will.
If you are experiencing holes in your yard, there is a variety of things that could be causing them. Animals, children at play, rotten roots, flooding and irrigation problems are the usual suspects. Small holes in yards are generally from insects, invertebrates or burrowing rodents.
The most likely culprit are voles. Voles, or meadow mice, grow to about 5 inches long and have brown-black fur. They spend most of their time underground or in dense grass. In areas of heavy activity, they leave open 1-inch holes, with no mounds, and form trails between the holes.
However, there's one way to tell when a reptile has moved in for sure. According to Blackwell, "Snake holes are hard to identify because they often use leftover mole or vole holes, so you should look for snakeskin in and around these holes to identify that it's home to a snake and not a mole."
Garter snakes don't create and burrow their own holes. They utilize the holes of other animals or natural cracks in the soil. Shed skins may be found in the spring or late summer. Most adult garter snakes shed two to three times per year.
Most terrestrial snakes can burrow through leaf litter or exceptionally loose soil, but few snakes can dig into packed earth. Some snakes native to areas with loose substrates are effective excavators, including the sand boas (Eryx sp.)