Gophers

Gophers, often considered as pests by humans, is a group of a small burrowing rodents that come in multiple varieties including:

• A) “Ground Squirrels” - for example Richardson’s Ground Squirrel – Squirrels from the family of Sciuridaes
• B) Pocket gophers, they belong to the family Geomyidae, native to Northern American continent and are considered as true gophers.

In terms of size, Gophers are much smaller than ground hogs, with an average weight of 0.5kg (~1/2 lbs). Gopher’s head and body is on average around 15cm or 6 inches long, a tail of around 8cm or 3 inches. Gophers have an average lifespan that does not exceed three years.
Tunnel digging is a common behavioral trait of all gophers. They also dig subterranean chambers. Gophers will create a community of tunnels with large mounds of dirt at their entrances - these are frequently referred to as "gopher towns". Fully developed gophers will frequently stand guard at the entrance to a tunnel and produce a whistling sound when predators are seen, causing all the other gophers to escape for the safety of the subterranean tunnels. A gopher town can expand and occupy big sections of prairie or mountain meadow and may have a population in the hundreds or thousands of gophers. This in turn often results in damage or extermination of plant life.
Gophers, similar to well known prairie dogs, are often the subject of shooting competitions, both formal and informal. Due to their specific size, large population, pest status they have become a target for marksmen. Annual shooting events, like that held by the "Ten Ring Gun Club", are held for cash prizes for shooting such rodents at ranges. “Gophers, which often inhabit mountain meadows, are typically shot at with such rifles as the Ruger 10/22 on an informal basis by ranchers and sportsmen” (source Wikipedia).

Damage caused by gophers is considered by many to be significant, it often includes destruction of subterranean utility cables and/or irrigation pipe; consumption and smothering of forage by earthen mounds (seedbeds) as well as change in species mix on rangelands by providing seedbeds for encroaching annual plants. Tree damage also occurs due to Gopher activity gophers damage trees by stem girdling and clipping, root pruning and sometimes damaging trees by exposing roots that is result of burrowing. In irrigated areas, gopher tunnels can often redirect water flows, causing loss of irrigation water. Gopher tunnels in ditch banks and earthen banks can result soil erosion and water loss.

Gophers Control

Gopher Control - Because of the high expense and being non practical, exclusion is of little use when one is faced with Gopher pest problem. At the same time fencing of highly valued ornamental shrubs or landscape trees may be justified but also can have limited effect. The gopher fence should be buried underground for at least 40 cm (~15 in). The mesh profile should be small to exclude gophers; 2.5cm (~1in) hardware cloth will suffice in such a case. In addition, cylindrical plastic netting placed over the seedling (this includes the bare root) reduces damage of planted forest seedlings significantly.

Toxicants (extreme caution has to be exercised – read all instructions carefully – restricted use pesticides)

To control gophers various types of poison can be deployed. To poison gophers, the bait must be directly placed in the gopher tunnel system manually or with an assistance of a special machine known as a burrow builder. Gopher control method of poison via trychnine alkaloid (0.3 to 0.5% active ingr.) on grain baits is often used. Also, Zinc phosphide (2%) is used but often found less effective than strychnine for gopher control. This is because Strychnine acts rapidly and gophers sometimes die within one hour after ingesting a dose.

Anticoagulants are also available for gopher control. The only registered product and commercially available product is RoZol - 0.005% (active ingredient) chlorophacinone (RoZol). Follow label instructions when using – exercise extreme caution. Chlorophacinone, another toxicant, is only registered for hand baiting and it’s not a restricted-use pesticide. Bait can be placed in a burrow by hand by using a special hand-operated bait dispenser probe, or by making an opening to the burrow system with a specially designed probe.

Gopher control via Fumigants - Federally permited fumigants include aluminum phosphide (Phostoxin/Fumitoxin), carbon tetrachloride, carbon disulfide and gas cartridges with various active ingredients. Fumigation is successful in treating pocket gophers only in cases where the soil is moist so it minimizes the diffusion of the gas.
Trapping is can usually be the best way to control pocket gophers on small to medium areas, and to remove remaining animals after a successfully deployed poisoning activity.
In gardens or other areas where landscape disturbance is not desirable, some gopher control success has been achieved by flooding pocket gophers burrows with a garden hose. This method can only be deployed in newer tunnel systems, and only where other damage from the water will not be a limiting or prohibiting factor.

Repellents: There are no commercially available repellents available for pocket gophers control. Granular formulations of moth crystals (paradichlorobenzene / naphthalene(naftalin)) are used but often prove itself not to be very effective. Attempts have been made to deploy noise making devices and various plants in an effort to control gophers – however they are considered not to be effective.
Gopher Control Vendors:

- Critter Getter Online porovides several products for gopher control - http://www.crittergetteronline.com/PDF/gophers.pdf
- Gopher Guide offers chemical products for Gopher Control - http://www.gopherguide.com/chemi.html, they also offer electronic devices - http://www.gopherguide.com/elect.html
- Do-it-Yourself Pest Control services sells an Easy-to-set-up gopher trap - http://www.doyourownpestcontrol.com/SPEC/pick-gophertrap.htm
- "Critter Repellent" offers several items for Gopher control http://www.critter-repellent.com/gopher/gopher-control.php

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