Hi all,

I have (now) two holes, about 50' apart, 1.5 to 2” in diameter, and identical. Neither has any dirt around it. First, one appeared; the second appeared about 7-10 days later. I have not seen any others.

I have not measured their depth, but they are deeper than my fingers can reach in, and seem to go straight down further than that as well.

I initially thought they were moles, since we have quite a large potato bug/earwig/earthworm population, and several large composters in the back yard. But having done a little research I have concluded that they're not, since the tunnel which would presumably join them is not raised, and there are no mole hills.

I have seen some digging in the yard as well, since the first hole appeared: kind of aborted holes, dug about 1.5-2” wide again, but only about 1” deep. I assumed these were squirrels which were digging to recover buried nuts: I’m seeing quite a few unearthed nutshells, looking like 1/2 walnuts.

The other day, something dug up a bedding plant in the flower garden as well, and either ate the entire thing, or at least carried it off: there is no sign of the missing flower.

Is it possible that all this damage is sqirrels? Can they dig that deep? Have I rejected the mole hypothesis too quickly? Other possibilities I can think of: mice or maybe snakes(?).

Oh: we live in Kitchener.

Thanks for any tips you might be able to provide. Please respond by e-mail to rob@gorbet.com.

Thanks, Rob.