When is a pest infestation most likely?

Being a home owner or having lots of land, you have probably heard all of the risks and dangers of a pest (or a few) taking over your precious lawn. If you want to keep your lawn tunnel-free, read this information from LandCare on when gophers and moles are most active, likely to mate, breed, and totally ruin your property that way you know when to schedule removal services.

Hibernation

Unlike what you may have heard, moles and gophers are active all year long. Many people think that these pests go into hibernation during the winter months, but that is unfortunately not the case. Moles and gophers are awake and active throughout the entire year. While these creatures definitely dig more during certain seasons, even in winter they are tunneling away.

Normally, gophers and moles dig the most during the spring and fall. This means, you can expect to see mounds and tunnels in March, April, September and October. This may vary according to your region, but in Oregon it is most likely for gophers to be most active during the spring and fall when the soil is ideal for digging. Get a head start and call LandCare in the early months of spring and fall before your land has been totally destroyed by tunnels.

Mating

Gophers are notoriously solitary animals, except during mating season. A male gopher will search for a potential mate by tunneling through dirt and rocks and fighting off other males in order to reach her. However, once the mating has occurred, the male gopher then closes off his tunnel and resumes a solitary life while the female raises the young.

Similarly, moles are territorial and live alone too. However, during mating season it is not uncommon for males and females to live in close quarters, even after mating has occurred.

Therefore, it is common to experience extra mole and gopher activing during the mating period, which usually occurs during the spring. If you spot tunnels or mounds during this time of the year, schedule an appointment with LandCare before the pups are born to prevent even more infestation.

Breeding

Gophers are known to have one to two broods (a gopher version of a litter) per year, delivering around five to six pups each litter. However, if survival conditions are good and there is an abundance of food and territory for these rodents to live in and explore, then broods can often be larger. Unfortunately, breeding can occur throughout the entire year, especially in irrigated regions where food is available and easy to access. Potentially, a female can bear up to four litters per year and as many as 13 pups per litter.

If you have a mole problem, you are in (a little bit more) luck. Moles only breed once a year, and their mating season usually runs from February to April. So, you can expect a brood of two to six pups right around the beginning of summer time.

The last thing you want is your pest infestation to get worse, so the minute you see an influx of tunnels or mounds, or even a baby gopher or mole roaming around, call LandCare Mole and Gopher to make sure these creatures are removed before the entire family completely destroys your lawn.