Gophers, Ground Squirrels, Voles, Roof Rats, and Deer Mice… Oh My! (2025)

Growing the Valley

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Dr. Roger Baldwin (UCCE Specialist in Human-Wildlife Conflict Resolution) discusses orchard management of pocket gophers, ground squirrels, voles (meadow mice), roof rats, and deer mice. This is a compilation of two episodes from 2022, with Luke Milliron providing a new introduction with highlights from 2024/2025.

Skip to the pest you’re concerned about:

00:05:35 Pocket Gophers

00:35:12 Ground Squirrels

00:48:33 Voles/Meadow Mice

01:02:38 Roof Rats

01:12:39 Deer Mice

2025 Update on Roof Rats: The Baldwin Lab (UC Davis) now has further data to show that the A24 trap did not end up working well, even with the addition of a platform under the trap. They also showed that snap traps used within trapping tunnels were very effective at reducing roof rat abundance and reinvasion in citrus orchards. Ultimately, a combination of trapping and baiting were highly effective at reducing roof rat abundance in citrus orchards and kept populations from rebounding for an extended period of time (at least 6 months as that is the duration that we tested, but in reality, the length of time would be more than that).

Other resources:

Gophers, Ground Squirrels, and Voles… Oh My!

UC IPM notes on pocket gophers

UC ANR video on how to set gopher traps

Vertebrate Pest Control Handbook Chapter on Controlling Pocket Gophers

Ground squirrels: http://www.groundsquirrelbmp.com/

Voles: http://vpcrac.org/files/4314/7612/1259/Meadow_vole_chapter.pdf

Deer Mice: http://vpcrac.org/files/3114/7612/0294/Deer_mice.pdf

Roof rats and deer mice: https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8513.pdf; http://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn74106.html

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Thank you to the Almond, Pistachio, Prune, and Walnut Boards of California for their kind donations. Thank you to Muriel Gordon for the music.

Mention of a rodenticide or fumigant does not constitute a recommendation, merely the sharing of research findings. Always follow the label. The label is law. Find out more at ipm.ucanr.edu.

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