Vole runways after snowmelt: reading a damaged lawn

What you're looking at

Runways are surface trails, not tunnels in the soil. You'll see winding paths of flattened or dead grass, sometimes with small burrow holes and clipped grass along them.

They show up all at once at snowmelt because the voles made them over months under the snow, out of sight.

USU Extension explains that voles tunnel under snow cover all winter in Utah, and their runways, one to two inches wide, and girdled trees show up when the snow melts. The extension reported voles turning up throughout Utah as the record 2023 snowpack melted, and populations tend to peak every two to five years. A deep-snow winter in a peak year is when lawns look the worst.

Voles, gophers or moles?

Each leaves a different sign, and the fix is different.

• Voles: surface runways and golf-ball-sized holes
• Pocket gophers: fan-shaped soil mounds with a plug to one side
• Moles: round volcano-shaped mounds and raised ridges, and uncommon around Salt Lake

Will the lawn recover?

Usually, yes. Rake out the runways to loosen the matted grass, water, and fertilize once the lawn is actively growing. Thin spots can be overseeded. Most lawns look normal again within a few weeks of growth.

Check your trees and shrubs

The bigger worry is bark. Voles chew bark at the base of young trees and shrubs under the snow. If the chewing goes all the way around the trunk, the tree may not survive. Look at the base of young trees as soon as the snow is gone.

Getting ahead of next winter

Most vole control is best done in fall, before snow cover protects them.

• Mow the lawn short going into winter
• Pull mulch back from tree trunks
• Wrap young trees with hardware cloth guards
• Use covered bait stations or runway traps in fall

Sources

• extension.usu.edu
• extension.usu.edu