Narrow, paired grooves girdling a young tree at the ground line are most likely caused by which pest?

• A. Mole
• B. Vole
• C. Gopher
• D. Rat

Answer: (B)

Voles are the culprits here. They feed on the bark and cambium around the base of small trees, and when they gnaw just under the soil line they create two parallel, narrow grooves that encircle the trunk. This girdling damage cuts off the tree’s nutrient flow and can kill a young tree. Moles tunnel beneath the turf and leave surface ridges and burrow activity rather than neat circular grooves around the trunk. Gophers chew on roots and root crowns, causing root loss and dieback, often with mounded debris, not the smooth, circumferential bark grooves voles produce. Rats can gnaw at bases too, but their damage patterns are less specifically circumnferential.