English: Hairy-tailed Mole (Parascalops breweri) range (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Hairy Tailed Mole
Parascalops breweri
The Hairy Tailed Mole has black, charcoal or grey fur coat on its top, with a grayish silver colored underside. It has a distinct thick hairy tail, which is very unlikely for mole species. Moles don't usually have hairy tails. The tail color can be black or grey, with white lighter shade on its tip. This hairy tail has given the name for this mole and easily identifiable than other species.
The eating habits for this mole consist of earth insects like larvae, beetles and earthworms. Their tunnels are usually built to forage for their food. This mole generally stay underground for longer periods.
Their territory would usually be in fields, road sides and coniferous forests, with the habitat consisting of well drained moist soil. They usually choose such tunnel system for a couple of reasons. A moist ground drive the prey on the surface, while the drainage lets the tunnel avoid being flooded.
The Hairy Tailed Mole can work in the evening as well as day time. During the dark, some moles would go above surface to search for their food. This species would inhabit shallow tunnels in dry hot summer months. There's usually an inconspicuous mark above the surface, which somewhat makes it harder to find the trail system of their burrow. In cold season in winter, they would dig deep tunnels underground to get away from the freezing cold. Molehills become more apparent when they dig deeper burrow systems.
Hairy-Tailed Mole (Photo credit: Tony Faiola)
The length of this mole on average is at 5.0 to 5.3 inches. They have a tail from 1.25 to 1.45 inches. Like other digging moles, they have lengthy scoop shaped claws on their feet. It is generally wider than its length. The female species are usually smaller than the male species.
Their distribution in the U.S. includes New Hampshire, North Carolina, Vermont, West Virginia, Tennessee, Connecticut, Maryland, Kentucky, Virginia, Massachusetts, Ohio, Maine, New York, and most of Northeastern United States. Some moles can also be seen in parts of Canada.
This mole has their gestation period reaching for a month, where they lay out offspring from 3 to 5 babies from April up to May. They can reproduce twice in a year in some cases. The parent mole would take care and wean their young for four weeks, after which the young would leave the nest to find its own home range.
The Hairy Tailed Mole can be handled and prevented from causing lawn damages by mole trappers and lawn pest removal procedures. Contact a wildlife company for assistance on mole trapping or if you have any inquiries. Wildlife professionals are experienced and know how to handle moles or other species of digging animals.
