Moles dig very quickly and far. Mole tunnels can be up to 200m long. But how deep are the corridors? That depends on the season! Find out below how deep and fast a mole digs and why this varies depending on the season.
A mole burrow has several chambers at different depths
The Mole Den
Moles are very hardworking and amazingly fast. you dig 5 to 15 meters per hour! However, the corridors do not run linearly, but are often laid out in a circle and overlap. The corridors usually run slightly downwards and lead into pantries or into the living or brood chamber. In a mole burrow there are several pantries, a watering hole, and a living and nesting chamber lined with moss, grass, and other soft materials. Each corridor has its purpose: There is a main entrance, an emergency exit, ventilation corridors, hunting corridors and simple walking corridors. The mole lives in its burrow alone.
How deep does the mole dig in summer?
In summer, the mole burrows relatively close to the surface: most of the burrows are only 10 up to 40cm deep. While the storage chambers are also at about this depth, the living chamber is at a depth of 50 to 100 cm.
How deep does the mole dig in winter?
Moles don't hibernate. This means that they also go in search of food in winter. Although they build up a small supply of live worms, they still need supplies from time to time, because moles eat the weight of their own body weight every day. Since higher layers of the earth are frozen in winter and worms and insects also retreat to deeper layers, the mole digs deeper in winter, namely 50 to 100 cm deep, in particularly hard winters also up to 1.5m.
tips
Found a mole in winter? The hypothermic animal will almost certainly need help. Warm up, then (!) offer him food and water and take him to the vet.