New Britain herald., 1914-05-30

and 1913. A small lot of American moleskins secured by the Biological Survey, U. S., Department of Agricul- ture, was prepared and made up by an expert furrier who pronounced them in every respect equal or supe- rior to European skins It seems likely, therefore, that a new industry amounting to many thousands of dollars annually might be developed in this country.
 Five Groups of Moles.
 In this country there are five rec ognized groups of true moles, two of which are confined 10 the Pacific coast and the other three are dis trbuted over the section east of the one hundredth meridian extending from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. In the latter districts and in the greater part of Pennsylvania, New York and New England the com mon mole occurs with the star nosed mole and Brewers mole.
 The mole IS so seldom seen, even by those who are familiar with its. work, that it Is often confused with other small creatures. particularly the shrew, the mole or meadow mouse, and the pocket gopher However II can be readily distinguished by it's stout, short, front limbs ending in broad, rounded hands with palms turned outward. It has rather elongated body, close plushlike fur, pointed snout, and short tall. Neither eyes nor ears are in evidence. It Is a creature of strictly subter- ranean habits.
 Moles Distasteful. It is believed commonly that the mole works only at regular periods each day but direct observations talk en In late summer and fall fail to ! substantiate the theory. The moles are distasteful and seldom eaten by domestic cats and dogs which have learned to catch them. Hawks ana owls take small toll from the mole tribe, as an examination of the stom- ach contents of over 2,000 of these birds disclosed the remains of but thirteen moles, five of which hao | been eaten by the red-tailed hawk, four by the red-shouldered hawk, ana one each by the broad-winged hawk. the barred owl. the great gray owl. | and the screech owl.
 From an examination of the stom- ach contents of 200 moles taken in | all months of the year 1t was found l that earthworms and white grubs constitute the bulk of the food. Beetles and their larvae, spiders, cen 1 tipedes, cocoons and puparia also l form a part of the diet. Seed coats | of corn, wheat, oats and peanuts have been seldom found in stomachs ot the moles.
 Complaints Frequent.
 Complaints of damage or depreda- | tions by moles are frequent and in sistent However. in very many cases a thorough investigation would show that the smaller rodents which fol- low the mole's runways are responsi- ble for the damage to corn and other cultivated seed products that grow | under ground.
 l When 1t Is desirable to destroy the mole the trap will be found to be l the most efficient means. So far an experiments undertaken with the ob- ject of finding an acceptable poison | bait have given negative results, as the very nature of the animals food makes 1t difficult to secure a satisfac-
 
 and insects. Moreover. the little ani- mai seems to be shrewd and quick to sense the danger in poisonous sub- 1 stances
 There are number of excellent mole traps on the market. most Of which will give good results If prop erly set, There are the harpoon. the . scissor-jaw and the choker types. Harpooning traps are designed to ! impale the mole in the ground by spring-driven spikes. The scissors jaw traps are intended to be set astride the runway to grasp the mole firmly when he attempts to pass In either d. rection, and the choker trap has a set of wire loops that encircle tho 1 burrow when the trap is set. All three l types are designed to be sprung by l the same sort of mechanism, a trig- ger pan resting on a depressed por- tion of the mole ridge in such a way 1 as to be lifted when the animal passes beneath. ...