You Definitely Need Some Townsend's Mole Facts in Your Life
It's that time again! Time for another entry into my series on mole facts for every species of mole in North America. For this article, I discuss the Townsend's mole (Scapanus townsendii). This is the largest mole of North America, and one of my favorite species as they live in my little neck of the woods.
Townsend's Mole Scientific Name and other Taxonomic Fun!
The common name of this mole, Townsend's, is taken from the name of John Kirk Townsend, the American naturalist, ornithologist and collector. He lived between 1809 and 1851 and collected a number of specimens from the Western United States on an expedition with the botanist Thomas Nuttall and entrepreneur Nathaniel Jarvis Wyeth. A wide number of North American wildlife are named for Townsend, who died at the age of 41 from unintentional arsenic poisoning. Townsend had used arsenic in his taxidermy preparations.Thomas Nuttall named the mole species for him. The genus name Scapanus is of Latinized Greek origin and means "digger", taken from the word skapaneus.
Townsend's Mole Range
According to the IUCN, the Townsend's mole has a range from "extreme southwestern British Columbia, Canada, southward through the Olympic Mountains (Washington) and Coast Range and interior valleys of Oregon (eastward to the foothills of the Cascades) to Ferndale, California, in the United States where it is restricted to the coast." It hews closer to sea level, even within mountain ranges. This mole species exists in the same range as the Coast Mole (Scapanus orarius) and the American Shrew-Mole ((Neurotrichus gibbsii). Where these species overlap, size is the best determinant of identity. The American Shrew-Mole is distinct enough in morphology and behavior and tiny size not to be confused with the Townsend's mole. The Coast mole is similar in morphology and appearance but is smaller than the Townsend's mole. As this blog article points out, you can use a dollar bill to tell the difference in size. A coast mole will be smaller than the dollar bill, a Townsend's mole is much larger than the bill.
Townsend's Mole Lifespan
The lifespan of the Townsend's mole is likely about 3 to 4 years, the same as other mole species, but has not actually been definitively documented. Moles are typically not kept in captivity due to these animals sensitivity to stress.
Townsend's Mole Physical Description and Species Characteristics
Townsend's moles have a similar appearance to most moles of the Talpidae family. It is cylindrical, with the characteristic spade feet. The nose is pink and tubular. The fur is grey to black. The tail is naked and pink. The main diagnostic identifier of this species is the size. At about 7 to a little over 9 inches, it is the largest of the North American moles. They weigh about 130 g.
Townsend's Mole feeding behavior
Like most moles, the Townsend's mole constructs shallow feeding tunnels closer to the surface for foraging for worms and other invertebrates. Most of their diet, about 70% of it is based in introduced earthworm species. Other invertebrates are eaten as well, such as beetle larva, slugs, etc. The Townsend's mole is unique among moles in that it has been reported to eat vegetable matter in the form of tubers. These do not constitute a major part of their diet, but it does mean they can partake of vegetable tubers in your garden. It should also be noted that their teeth are not as adapted to eating tough tubers as rodents are capable of doing, so likely they will have to eat extremely soft (such as rotting) roots for food.
Townsend's Mole Habitat Preferences
The Townsend's moles "occurs in meadows, fields, pastures, lawns, and golf courses" and can live in more moist soil habitats than the Coast mole. They may even at times live in the fir forests common to the Pacific Northwest.
Townsend's Mole Reproduction and Social Behavior
Like most moles, they are solitary animals. They breed between January to February, giving birth around March to April after 4 to 6 weeks of gestation. The newborn moles will become fully furred in about 30 days, after which they will disperse to find new territories for themselves. Vaginal plugs have been found in female moles indicating that they likely mate with multiple male moles. Male moles will mate with multiple females in new tunnels they build to access female moles at the edges of their territory. As with the rest of the mole family, they have only 1 litter of about 3 offspring a year.
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed reading about the marvelously large Townsend's mole. If you have some in your backyard or garden that you are trying to get rid of humanely feel free to check out my posts on Plants That Repel Moles and and my review of the Vekibee Sonic Mole Repeller.
Don't forget my guide on how to Get The Best Out of Sonic Mole Repellers, too.
Stay tuned in the future for more information and facts about moles!