Earth rat

Often in the land on the plots or gardens, there are small rounded holes. With a great deal of confidence we can say that these tracks were left by the earth rat. Rodents are one of species of micecalled vole. They are the largest representatives of this species.

Externally, animals look like a pasyuk:

• long round tail 6-13 cm, covered with hair;
• large body up to 25 cm;
• coat color varies from dark brown to black.

There is a version that there are rodents of a brighter color, but as the yellow earth rat looks like, no one can say, because no one managed to see it in wildlife.The quality of hair depends on the habitat and age of the vole. The animal weighs up to 500 g. This is where all the similarities with the rat genus end.

The earth rat is very prolific. One female per year is able to give offspring five times, beginning to give birth two months after birth. Each litter ranges from two to fourteen. rat pupsthat are displayed underground in a specially equipped place. Young offspring begin to lead an independent life from the age of one month. In favorable conditions, the population of earthen rats grows at a catastrophic rate and can reach 400 individuals per hectare.

Earth rat

Important!

Noticing on the site traces of a rat in the snow or land, you should immediately take appropriate measures to combat uninvited guests. Any methods applied on time will be good. Do not forget that time is working against you. The longer the pests live in the surrounding area, the harder it is to get rid of their presence.

The earth rat has a big head with a blunt muzzle, small sizes of eyes and ears, short front paws with long, almost straight claws.The hind legs are extended, which helps the animal to swim perfectly.

Lifestyle

Pests of gardens and gardens - field rats remain active throughout the year, because they do not hibernate. In winter, they are only underground and close up the entrance to the burrows, protecting themselves from the ingress of cold air. In hot, summer weather, they also block access to their home, protecting it from too high a temperature.

Earthen rats for a short time leave shelters in the evening and at night in order to be supported by plants or root crops. They do not move far from the hole and in case of danger quickly hide in their shelter.

Rats dig holes in the ground and make numerous labyrinths at a distance of 10-20 cm from the ground surface. The nest is surrounded by a network of tunnels and has several storerooms where the animal stores stocks for the winter.

Interesting!

If near the dwelling of the earth pest are holes and moles, the rat does not bother to dig a new one and can use ready-made labyrinths to quickly get to the power source.

What feeds on

The earth rat in the garden is a disaster for the owners, since, by digging holes, it destroys everything in its path.He likes to eat alfalfa, damages cereals (wheat, barley), cotton and rice sprouts during ripening. Gourds, including melons and watermelons, are not ignored either.

If young trees come across on the way, then earth rats in the country can cause them to die. They gnaw seedlings at the root of the neck, or strongly eat the bark, causing irreparable harm. Apple trees, bird cherry and willow are most often affected.

On a note!

Not only useful plants, roots and tubers are eaten by these pests. It used to be thought that a weed would be able to stop water rats, but in the absence of the right feed, they eat up everything that grows on the ground.

Earthen rodents prey on small field mice, mollusks, crayfish, insects and other animals. They feel great in the water, climb trees, attacking bird nests, ravaging them and eating chicks. They can live in houses, sheds, cellars, exterminating the harvest. In pursuit of food, they gnaw mud walls and dig up labyrinths under the floor.

Habitats

You can meet an earthen rat in the central part of the country, the southern regions of Siberia, in the Caucasus and in Central Asia.The extreme North is unfavorable due to very low temperatures and the lack of adequate nutrition. Wet lowlands along the banks of ponds, the area around swamps and damp meadows are the most favorite places for rodents to live. Too many bred animals causes them to settle in the fields, gardens and vegetable gardens. During floods, rivers migrate to drier and more suitable places to live.

Pest control methods

Fight against earth rats

To get rid of an earthen rat, you need to make sure that this is the rodent that does not allow to work quietly on its site. Maybe your neighbor has become a mole. He is also able to search through the whole garden, vegetable garden and destroy the harvest. It is worth looking at a photo of an earthen rat and then decide on the methods of struggle.

There are various ways to solve the problem, depending on what purpose is set: completely get rid of the pest or expel it from its territory. For these tasks, the following methods are used:

• mechanical - traps, traps, ultrasonic scarers;
• chemical - poisons and poison for ratstoxic substances;
• animals on the site - cats, dachshund dogs;
• smoking out;
• planting odorous plants;
• filling holes with water.

Let us consider in more detail how to deal with an earthen rat mechanically. The variant is long and requires a certain patience, since it is necessary to find the holes of the rodents, dig a depression in front of them for 15-20 cm, put trap or rat trap and mask that the animal did not notice them. Electronic traps can be used that kill the victim with shock. But rats are intelligent creatures and will not fit the second time to where their kinsman died.

Chemical poisons or drugs that are toxic to pests, if improperly used, can spoil not only the crop, but also cause poisoning of a person or domestic animals. This path is not the safest to use. It is justified in the case when a large number of pests have divorced the plot and it becomes impossible to catch them.

There are more humane ways to fight. Cats and dogs living in the house, will hunt rodents and force them to leave uncomfortable territory. Ultrasonic devices that create certain frequencies, constantly annoying animals, will also expel them. For man rodent ultrasound repeller do not pose a danger.

On a note!

You can smoke a rat out of a hole by placing a burnt piece of rabbit fur, a rag dipped in gasoline, a bunch of wormwood or mint. Rodents have a very delicate sense of smell, so they immediately react to a sharp odor.

It will help to scare away earth pests and the neighborhood with black elderberry, the root system of which releases cyanide substances that are poisonous to rats. True, the newcomers will have to smoke for a long time, since they will not want to immediately leave their home.

Another method is a safe method used by summer residents: flooding holes with water. Earthen rats swim well, but the increased humidity of the nest will cause its owners to leave their habitable places.

The options for the struggle are varied, but which one will be more effective will depend on the specific situation on your site.