What To Do If Voles Invade Your Streator Yard

Have you ever seen a stocky, mouse-like creature digging in your yard? If so, this may have been a vole. Voles are small rodents found in grassy areas, where they construct underground burrows. While these little rodents don’t seem like they could do much damage, there are actually many problems with voles in Streator. Keep reading to learn more about voles, how they ended up in your yard, and what to do when they invade.

What Does A Vole In Streator Look Like?

Voles look similar to mice, and it can be difficult to tell them apart at first glance. In fact, voles are sometimes referred to as meadow mice, orchard mice, or field mice. So, what’s the difference between a vole and a mouse?

The body of a vole is stockier than that of a mouse, measuring 3 to 5 inches long (not including its tail.) Its ears are also smaller and partially hidden, while a mouse has larger, more prominent ears. A vole also has a blunt nose, compared to a mouse’s pointed muzzle. Mice have much longer tails than voles as well. Voles typically have long, coarse fur that is brown with black hairs intermixed. Mice can have similar coloring but are more often dusty-gray in color.

Voles are also much less likely to infest homes than mice. While mice routinely enter and nest inside human dwellings, voles prefer to live outdoors in areas with thick grass or vegetation. They frequent fields, hillsides, orchards, and areas near streams or ponds, but they will also invade residential yards and gardens.

How Do You Get Voles In Your Yard?

Voles may wander into your yard from neighboring areas. If your home is near a field, orchard, farm, or natural water source, you may be more likely to have voles move in. Voles like grassy areas with lots of ground cover so that they can evade predators. An overgrown lawn is very enticing to voles, and they may decide to burrow into it.

Your yard will also attract voles if it provides a food source. Voles are herbivores that eat roots, seeds, tree bark, flowers, leaves, stems, grasses, and fruits. If your yard has lots of trees, flowers, and other plants, it may be particularly attractive to voles. These rodents can wreak havoc on your trees, lawn, and garden. Once they’ve begun burrowing, it can be difficult to get rid of them without professional rodent control.

Signs Of Voles In Your Garden

Voles are nocturnal and spend most of their time in their underground burrows. This can make spotting the voles themselves difficult. However, there are other telltale signs that your yard has voles. Here are some common signs of voles in Streator yards:

• The presence of aboveground runways that connect burrow entrances

• Burrow openings in the ground measuring about 1 1/2 - 2 inches wide

• Fresh grass clippings near vole burrows and runways

• Vole droppings - these are greenish and around 3/16 inches long

• Gnaw marks on the bottoms of tree trunks

• Damaged turf, flowers, and vegetable plants

Any of these signs may point towards a vole infestation in your yard. A large number of voles can cause extensive damage to your garden. Voles will eat the plants in your garden and can severely damage fruit trees. When voles chew extensively around a tree’s trunk or roots, this can inhibit the tree’s flow of water and nutrients. This damage can eventually kill a tree. Trees with yellowish leaves, reduced fruit production, and delayed development may signal a vole infestation.

Voles are a major nuisance and can easily become out of control on your property. In the next section, learn how to protect your yard and garden from these destructive rodents.

How To Keep Voles Away For Good!

Voles can be challenging to get rid of, but there are some ways that you can deter them in the first place. Keeping your lawn cut short can make it less enticing for voles. Removing yard debris like piles of leaves or grass can also help keep voles away. Reducing any other vegetation that provides cover for voles is also a good idea.

While these measures can help avoid a vole infestation, once they have chosen your yard for their burrows, voles aren’t likely to move on anytime soon. When voles invade, professional pest control in Streator is the best way to get rid of them.

Quik-Kill Pest Eliminators is Streator’s top source for effective vole removal. Since 1929, our company has served the Streator area with reliable pest control solutions. If voles are tearing up your lawn and ruining your garden, we can put a stop to them. Contact us today for quality vole control in Streator.