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St. Gallen, 25/05/2021. Dying plants, withered shrubs, and dead tree saplings are often indicative of a vole infestation. The same family also includes the common vole, the field vole and the bank vole. These species are often difficult to distinguish between especially for the untrained. If the voles nest in gardens or fields, they multiply rapidly and become difficult to eradicate. So what can you do about these annoying rodents? The most efficient and ecological solution is prevention with the help of targeted use of sonic repellers and vole traps.

The spread and reproduction of voles

In order to control voles efficiently, we must first understand how they live. Rodents do not reproduce in winter, and many animals die in these arduous conditions, so numbers are lowest in spring. This changes rapidly with the onset of milder temperatures and the blossoming of nature. The peripheral areas of arable land, fields and gardens with tall and dense vegetation are problematic. There, the voles remain undisturbed and are hardly noticed by humans and predators. If the vole population is not noticed and controlled immediately, it will multiply within a few weeks, and by summer at the latest, the affected areas will be literally overrun. Voles reproduce from March to October and give birth three to four times, with an average of five pups, during this period. An infested field may well have a common vole population in excess of 500 animals per hectare in summer. By this time control is only possible to a limited extent.

Monitoring - detecting vole infestations in good time

In order to prevent a vole population from growing so large, it must be recognised early and acted upon quickly. It is, therefore, advisable to set up traps in the spring in the peripheral areas of the sites to be protected. The number and frequency of captured voles give a good indication of the size of the vole population. In the garden, such peripheral areas include bushes, hedges, etc. In the field or arable land, there are open, uncultivated areas and also small woodland between the fields and arable land. From there, the vole spreads over the usable areas. Moles favour the settlement of voles, including common voles. The small rodents often use the tunnel systems in the soil that have been dug by moles. The mole itself is a carnivore and eats the odd young vole, so it is not bothered by them sharing its extensive tunnel systems. The vole reaches the roots of plants via the tunnels and eats them.

Drive away moles and voles

To protect farmland and gardens and keep moles and voles away from them, the use of rodent repellers is recommended. These emit sound and vibrations that disturb the animals. However, the if no other habitat is available and voles put up with the disturbance and will settle. Depending on the manufacturer, the repellers also differ in their impact and effectiveness. The quality Swiss company SWISSINNO offers a waterproof solar mole repeller with a very large radius of action of 650m² and a solar cell that charges the device's battery, thereby provides 24-hour protection. This is effective with both moles and voles.

Control methods without poison or chemicals

The use of poisoned bait or poison gas is increasingly being criticised as these substances endanger other animals. There are fewer and fewer approved chemical control agents available for the control of voles. On organically and ecologically farmed land, poisons are forbidden. The killing of moles is prohibited in Germany and Austria, so in this case, the only option is to drive them away with sound and vibration. In all other EU countries, moles may be controlled. The SWISSINNO Mole Trap SuperCat is ideal for this.

Voles, on the other hand, can be controlled without restriction with snap traps. However, these need be set up in spring as a preventive measure. Otherwise, the vole populations grow so much that it is no longer possible to keep up with the control and emptying of the traps. This is especially true for large fields and arable land; in the garden, the situation is usually much easier. Traps such as the Vole Trap SuperCat can be inserted directly into the tunnel systems that voles use. Regardless of what kind of vole it is: common vole, field vole or bank vole, the SuperCat is ideally suited to catching them and killing them virtually instantly. The trap works without poison and does not require any bait.


Natural and sustainable pest control solutions

It is not only in the control of voles and moles that SWISSINNO relies on innovation and modern technology instead of chemicals and poisons. Eco-friendly solutions have also been developed for other pests such as rats, mice, martens, insects or snails, which work in harmony with nature and at the same time highly effective. The aim is to protect areas used by humans while maintaining the ecological balance and sparing animals unnecessary suffering. The continuous development and improvement of the products offered enables sustainable pest control and complies with current environmental and animal welfare standards.