Musings on Scapanus townsendii

All construction on PE&A has been at a standstill for almost two weeks due to extensive mole activity. Until the mole is gone, I see no point in putting effort into creating what may be destroyed the next night.

I should be building a trestle here. Instead, the landscape is beginning to look like Craters of the Moon.

Scapanus townsendii, or Townsend’s mole, is often described as “impressive” and “well adapated” to its environment. Rarely is it mentioned these spawn of Satan are pure, incarnate evil.

Moles are solitary creatures and are very territorial, so it is rare for a typical city lot to have more than one or two moles. Sometimes a mole takes up residence in the yard that is so mild mannered and well behaved that only the most subtle signs of mole activity can be found. With a mole like this I’ve learned to live and let live, knowing that as long as it is resident, it will fight off intruders.

Other times a mole moves in that is much more aggressive, creating multiple new tunnels and hills , excavating perhaps 20-50 pounds of soil in a single night. These moles must go, and much of the time, I’m able to extricate the varmint within 72 hours of detection.

And then, on occasion, a mole seems to be sent as a punishment by Zeus. A mole so intent on evil destruction, and so smart as to evade any attempt I make to capture it, that I question what I have done to deserve this curse. In the 17 years I’ve lived here, I can only recall one other mole that was so destructive and unrelentingly evil as the one I have now.

I sometimes hear the adjective Sisyphean misused to describe a large task that will require a great effort to overcome. A more accurate word for a tough, surmountable effort is Herculean. A Sisyphean task, by comparison, can never be completed regardless of the effort. As a punishment for his hubris, Zeus sentenced Sisyphus to an eternity of useless effort and unending frustration. There is no end, unless Zeus on a whim changes his mind. Which of these two adjectives applies to my current bane? I do not yet know.

So in the meantime the railroad construction crew sits idle—hopefully no rioting will occur among the workers like it did in Palouse—and I spend my time in between setting traps enjoying the flowers. Zeus may have cursed me, but I’m clearly blessed by Chloris. Enjoy some pictures…

A sure sign of summer, the Asiatic lilies are in full bloom.

Honeybees enjoy a tasty globe thistle, currently one of their favorite flowers in the yard along with the Oregano.

Crocosmia is a favorite of Anna's hummingbirds right now

This variety of hydrangea starts off blue, changes to purple and will be red by late summer.

I have 28 varieties of dahlias this year and about half of them are now in bloom. This one is Vernon Rose, one of my favorites and usually the first variety to bloom each year.

External links:

• An extensive description of Scapanus townsendii
• Mole behavior and control information from Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife