122 



almost, or entirely, groundless. They also agree with the ac- 

 count given by Adams on a former page, showing the inability 

 of moles to undergo more than a very brief period of starvation. 



CONCLUSIONS. 



The foregoing observations on the food of moles show that 

 so little vegetable matter is eaten that this habit need not be 

 taken into account in considering the relation which they bear 

 to the farmer. This relation must depend largely upon the 

 kinds and quantity of animal food that they consume. 



The action of earthworms in the soil is usually supposed 

 to be beneficial to the soil, and if this be true, the destruction 

 of such worms by moles is an injury to the farmer. Further- 

 more, in a few cases insects that are known to be beneficial in 

 their habits have been found in the stomachs of moles, thus 

 showing that in this respect they are injurious to the farmer, 

 In most cases, however, the insects found in the stomachs were 

 species of noxious habits. 



Of the fifty mole stomachs examined by Wilson and Gar- 

 man, earthworms were present in 45 and insects in 38. Garman 

 estimates that in his examinations earthworms composed two- 

 thirds and insects one-third the bulk of food taken. Wilson 

 does not estimate the relative quantities of each, but from his 

 explanatory notes it would seem that a similar ratio might 

 apply in his case. Dyche, in his examinations, found that 

 earthworms composed 43.2 per cent, and insects at least 53 

 .per cent, of the food. Over 22 per cent, of the insects he desig- 

 nates as "ground beetles" and these may probably be consid- 

 ered as being beneficial on account of their predacious habits. 

 If we are to regard earthworms as being a benefit to the soil, 

 then the stomach examinations of the 117 moles show that at 

 least two-thirds of their food may consist of animal life that 

 is helpful rather than injurious to the farmer. 



This would seem to justify the destruction of moles in any 

 way possible, but it should be remembered that the function of 

 earthworms is not very well understood and that the good re- 



