Molehills by the byway, Homington Down
Introduction
The photograph on this page of Molehills by the byway, Homington Down by Maigheach-gheal as part of the Geograph project.
The Geograph project started in 2005 with the aim of publishing, organising and preserving representative images for every square kilometre of Great Britain, Ireland and the Isle of Man.
There are currently over 7.5m images from over 14,400 individuals and you can help contribute to the project by visiting https://www.geograph.org.uk
Molehills by the byway, Homington Down
Image: © Maigheach-gheal Taken: 27 Feb 2012
Moles live in loose, easily diggable soil throughout Britain, from sea level to about 3000ft, but there are no moles in Ireland. They do not colonise poor mountain soil or acid, sandy soil because these contain few earthworms. Moles belong to the order of mammals called insectivores, and are related to hedgehogs. Molehills spoil lawns and sports grounds and reduce the value of pasture. They may also damage blades of cutting machines. In addition, moles rob the soil of earthworms. Farmers and gardeners are therefore their chief enemies. Other enemies include owls, foxes, dogs and cats. The mole's name is possibly a shortened form of 'mouldiwarp', a names still used in northern England, which is derived from Old English 'molde', meaning earth and 'werpen', meaning to throw. But how can they make the hills when the earth is as hard as iron.
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Image Location
Latitude
51.013197
Longitude
-1.837444