Strange Yard Holes with No Mounds? 12 Causes—and Quick Fixes to Restore Your Lawn
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Holes in your yard can be more than a minor eyesore; they could mean hidden animals are sneaking around at night or burrowing beneath your lawn. But not all yard holes are created equal. Some do not have mounds of dirt, making it trickier to figure out who or what is responsible.
You can use various means to help eliminate them; however, it’s very important to know what type of animal is burrowing in your yard to determine your approach. If you are among the many asking themselves, “What animal is digging holes in my yard?” Keep reading to learn how to identify the culprit and determine the best course of action.
Voles
Voles are small rodents that gnaw shallow, golf-ball-sized holes in yards, usually oval-shaped. The entrance to tunnels is 1 to 1½ inches in diameter, with no mound of soil present. The voles create narrow runways on the grass surface, showing matted grass and shallow tunnels as they forage for roots, stems, and bulbs.
Keep grass short through frequent mowing to discourage voles, as the long grass and overgrown plants are just the cover these little rodents prefer. A delicate mesh barrier around susceptible garden locations can also afford protection from voles.
Yellow Jackets
Yellow jackets will also use holes already in the ground to make an entryway for building an underground nest, especially if the soil is dry and loose. These nests may be of variable size and shape, sometimes getting larger in time as the colony builds up. The jacketjacket nest can be identified by the activity in such holes quite often; yellow jackets enter and leave these holes, especially when the temperature is high.
Nest sites should be avoided, and one should not block the hole, keeping in mind that yellow jackets can get aggressive around their nests. It could be the safest option to call a pest control professional for huge nests or ones that are hard to reach.
Ground-Nesting Bees
Ground-nesting bees are those species of bees, including bumblebees, sweat bees, and cellophane bees, that nest in the soil by digging small tunnels. Ground-nesting bees create small entrance holes in dry, sandy soil. Depending on the type, like bumblebees, they live in groups, while other ground bees are solitary and lay their eggs in these small tunnels.
These are generally no larger than ½ inches in diameter, and there is very little buzzing bee activity around the area. They are excellent pollinators and should be left alone unless a problem arises. To prevent burrowing, keep the soil moist. They like dry soil to burrow in.
Rabbits
Rabbits, especially females, sometimes dig shallow nests to hide their young in grassy areas. These nests are often lined with dead grass, fur, and leaf-covered or covered with other plant debris to disguise the presence of the baby rabbits inside. A nest may look like a dead grassy patch but will reveal fur and some nesting materials if moved carefully.
If rabbits are abundant in your yard, you can discourage them by eliminating cover areas such as tall grass and installing low fencing around garden areas. Otherwise, leave the nest alone until the young rabbits leave alone.
Skunks
Skunks are nocturnal diggers. Overnight, they can leave a lawn with clusters of small, shallow holes scattered about as they forage for grubs and insects. These holes generally have 1-3 inches diameters and do not have tunnels, but they can give your lawn a spotted appearance.
You may also notice the slight skunk smell if they have been active in that area. To minimize the skunk activity, care for your lawn by treating for grubs, one of their primary food sources, and consider motion lights, which will keep them from digging into your yard.
Chipmunks
Chipmunks burrow clean, rounded holes about 2 inches in diameter into tunnels where they store food and protect themselves from predators. They are noticeable for carefully whisking the dirt excavated away from the hole in their cheeks to prevent a visible mound at the entrance of their burrows.
Eliminate food sources such as seeds and berries from your lawn, make barriers over structures, and apply repellent sprays as needed.
Ground Hogs
Groundhogs are large burrowing rodents constructing extensive tunnel systems with entrance holes up to 12 inches in diameter. Although burrow entrances are often located near fences, trees, or other structural features and are littered with piles of dirt, auxiliary entrances are typically just clean, large holes in open areas.
To deter groundhogs, garden spots and other locations can be made less inviting by fencing or rock barriers, and potential harboring spots like piles of brush or tall vegetation adjacent to structures can be removed.
Rats
Rats are also burrowers; for example, Norway rats favor nesting on the ground with numerous entrances. Rat burrows are about 2 to 4 inches in diameter, and the walls are hard-packed and smooth, leading into tunnels. You may find droppings, gnawed plants, or grease marks around a rat burrow entry.
Cleaning your yard, removing food supplies, and rat-proofing structures will encourage rats to not nest. To keep the population of rats as low as possible, barriers around garden beds or other methods of pest control will also be installed.
Cicadas Killers
Cicadas killers create small, clustered holes in your yard as they emerge from the soil in the usual late spring and summer. The holes are about ¼ to ½ inch wide and serve as an exit point for the cicadas as they complete their life cycle. You can often see ejected shells nearby if cicadas have newly emerged.
These holes are generally temporary and harmless, but aeration or light tilling of the soil will disrupt the soil enough to prevent thick aggregations from forming when they emerge again.
Armadillos
Armadillos dig shallow divots in their search for insects and grubs. Their holes are usually as large as 24 feet across and 5 inches deep. These nocturnal animals tend to leave circular patches of soil or grass upturned while foraging for food. Armadillos prefer moist soil with a high insect population.
To repel armadillos, gardens can be surrounded by fences or repellants applied in areas where digging often occurs. You can also treat your yard to decrease the insect population, making it less attractive to armadillos.
Earthworms and Worm Casts
Holes from earthworms and worm casts naturally form small holes in the soil, which are necessary for aeration to enrich the soil with nutrients. These small holes can be found near worm casts, which are small mounds of soil that usually form from earthworms’ expelling action.
Holes and casts from worms are more apparent in moist, healthy soils and demonstrate a healthy ecosystem. As earthworms improve soil condition, control is not necessary. If worm casts are an aesthetic concern, regular mowing and raking can reduce their appearance.
Crayfish
Crayfish sometimes create small burrow openings in damp, swampy areas and on dry perimeters around bodies of water. Burrows tend to become evident after rainfall, even in waterlogged soil near all bodies of water or where drainage is poor.
Crayfish use burrows to protect themselves and reach underground water. If crayfish burrows are a nuisance, their activity can be minimized by enhancing drainage or removing nearby water features.
Disclaimer: This list is solely the author’s opinion based on research and publicly available information.
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