Pest Identification And Information

Pocket Gopher

Pocket gophers get their name from their fur-lined (pocket like) cheek pouches in which food is carried. They live in an underground burrow system, often a network of several hundred feet ranging in depth from a few inches to several feet. Several gophers may inhabit a single burrow system. Soil removed from newly-made burrows is pushed into mounds on the surface, usually leaving a small horseshoe-like depression on one side of the mound, indicating the direction of the tunnel.

FACTS:

• Some gophers may make 100 or more mounds in a season. most mounds are made in late summer and fall when digging shallow burrows to get roots for winter.

• Roots are usually stored in small chambers, often a few inches deep and containing a quart or two of food.

• Gophers are active in the winter.

IDENTIFICATION:

Most people know what gophers look like, however pocket gophers do not have stripes, like striped gophers.  Often people with pocket gophers don't see them, they just see their distinctive mound.

BIOLOGY:

• Breeding begins as frost leaves the ground and is completed in late spring.

• One or two litters of two to four young are born during this period and begin to move throughout the burrow system when about one month old.

HABITS:

• In late summer and early fall many young gophers are forced to the surface and wander about searching for food and will invade any unused burrow systems.

TREATMENT:

Poisoned baits and trapping are the most effective and practical methods of control.

TREATMENT - POISONED BAIT METHOD:

This method involves dropping bait, with a spoon, into the underground runways through holes made by a probe.

A good probe can be made of ¾ inch gas pipe welded to a blunt point about 36 inches long.  Locate the main runway by probing into the soil 12 - 18 inches back from the mound on the side where the horseshoe like depression is found.  Remove the probe and insert the amount of bait the label calls for.  Close the opening with grass and cover with dirt to keep out light and air.  Make one bait application for every 4 - 6 fresh mounds.  

Right way to probe

Wrong way to probe

Probe A is in a plugged lateral tunnel.

Probe B is too deep.  The bait will be deposited below the tunnel.

TREATMENT - TRAPPING METHOD:

Small spring traps, such as the Victor Easy Set pocket gopher trap are used for trapping gophers.  To locate the runway use a good garden trowel

or shovel. Scrape the dirt from a fresh mound until a round circle of fresh dirt is found plugging the lateral runway. Open the lateral and put one trap with the claws away from the opening. However, it is usually better to dig down the lateral into the main runway and than place two traps back to back in the main runway.

A.  Attach “stovepipe” type wire to stake to retrieve traps.

B.   Cover opening of hole to block out  light.

C.  Typical job will have 4 traps, 2 at each end of runways.

D.  Rake the ground even to determine new activity in case of callback.

E.   Retrieve traps and dispose of dead gophers.

Hold the trap in both hands fig. 1

Place thumb on upper frame (B) back of the jaws, (A) with the other fingers underneath the lower frame (C) fig. 1

Lift the trigger (d) with the fingers and press down with the thumb until the frame members are parallel

Figure 2 -- Engage hook end of trigger (D) over end of upper frame.. (E) insert long end of trigger in setting hole of pan (F)

Harpoon Trap