{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Taxon",
  "slug": "mole",
  "name": "Mole",
  "scientificName": "Talpa europaea",
  "category": "Mammal",
  "summary": "The European mole is a small, cylindrical burrowing mammal with velvety black fur, tiny eyes, and enormous spade-like front paws built for digging. It spends almost its entire life underground, hunting earthworms in a network of tunnels, and the molehills on lawns are the soil it pushes to the surface. Moles weigh only about 70–130 g and usually live around 3 years.",
  "conservationStatus": "Least Concern",
  "taxonomy": {
    "kingdom": "Animalia",
    "phylum": "Chordata",
    "class": "Mammalia",
    "order": "Eulipotyphla",
    "family": "Talpidae",
    "genus": "Talpa"
  },
  "stats": {
    "weightKg": 0.11,
    "lengthM": 0.14,
    "topSpeedKmh": 4,
    "lifespanYears": 6
  },
  "facts": [
    {
      "label": "Scientific name",
      "value": "Talpa europaea"
    },
    {
      "label": "Diet",
      "value": "Insectivore (mostly earthworms)"
    },
    {
      "label": "Habitat",
      "value": "Underground tunnels in grassland, woodland, gardens"
    },
    {
      "label": "Lifespan",
      "value": "About 3 years (up to 6)"
    },
    {
      "label": "Weight",
      "value": "70–130 g (2.5–4.6 oz)"
    },
    {
      "label": "Top speed",
      "value": "Around 4 km/h digging through soil"
    },
    {
      "label": "Conservation status",
      "value": "Least Concern (IUCN)"
    }
  ],
  "range": {
    "nativeRange": "Mainland Britain and most of continental Europe, east into Russia; absent from Ireland.",
    "continents": [
      "Europe",
      "Asia"
    ]
  },
  "sources": [
    {
      "citation": "IUCN Red List — Talpa europaea.",
      "url": "https://www.iucnredlist.org/search?query=Talpa%20europaea&searchType=species"
    },
    {
      "citation": "Animal Diversity Web — Talpa europaea. University of Michigan Museum of Zoology.",
      "url": "https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Talpa_europaea/"
    },
    {
      "citation": "Wikipedia — Mole.",
      "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_mole"
    }
  ],
  "lastReviewed": "2026-07-16",
  "canonicalUrl": "https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/mole/",
  "license": {
    "name": "CC BY-NC 4.0",
    "url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/",
    "attribution": "Global Animal Guide — https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/mole/",
    "note": "Free to reuse for non-commercial purposes with attribution and a link back to the canonical page."
  }
}