Grisly or just country life? The mole photos dividing social media

For decades mole catchers in the countryside have hung their carcasses on fences to be counted for payment and as evidence of their trapping prowess.

“- Published Warning - this story contains images some readers may find distressing For decades, mole catchers in the countryside have hung their carcasses on fences to be counted for payment and as evidence of their trapping prowess”

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When hill walker Simon Lucas shared a photograph of the tradition in the Lake District on social media, he was unprepared for the ferocity of the response.

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Lucas, 61, a musician from Bristol, travels to the Lake District in Cumbria for one week every month and regularly posts pictures of his wanderings.

In February, he was returning from a hike on the road which connects Borrowdale to Seathwaite Farm when something caught his eye: a row of moles had been hung by their pink snouts from a barbed wire fence, their outsized front paws groping lifelessly in the air.

He put his photograph on a social media group devoted to the Lake District asking for an explanation as to why the moles were there.

The comments began immediately, with hundreds of comments reflecting deeply entrenched and polarised views.

Lucas says there were city dwellers who found it horrible and rural commenters who defended it as country life.

Normally his posts get just a few likes or comments, and he has never experienced anything like the reaction.

Moles are native to the UK and widespread, with an estimated population of more than 40 million.

They are widely seen as a pest on agricultural land because their tunnelling can damage the root systems of crops and pasture and the molehills can cause damage to machinery.

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Richard Hodgson, who farms at Howick in Northumberland, notes that soil from mole hills can become part of hay or silage, ruining the quality and making the feed unpalatable.

It is not illegal to kill a mole, external which is considered a pest by the government, but they are protected under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 and only certain methods such as traps or gas are allowed.

Mikey Fullerton, from Consett in County Durham, followed his father into the mole-catching business.

“- Published Warning - this story contains images some readers may find distressing For decades, mole catchers in the countryside have hung their carcasses on fences to be counted for payment and as evidence of their trapping prowess”

BBC

Like his father before him, he strings the moles up, though he says he might not do it on public footpaths.

He explains that showing farmers what you've caught on their land can lead to more work; if a fence displays moles, other farmers may notice and hire the same catcher, potentially covering ten farms in the area.

Fullerton says some people do not agree with the practice, which has continued for decades, and in some places he will bucket the moles to show the farmer.

He adds that moles do cause serious damage and need controlling.

Karen Barwick from Carlisle dislikes the sight of moles impaled on fences.

She photographed a row of them in February near Bowbank in County Durham and said it made her feel a little sad and confused.

She later learned that the practice has long been done for payment, and she was surprised to see it still happening, adding she felt sorry for the moles.

Duncan Hutt from Northumberland Wildlife Trust says moles are fantastic creatures that do an important job for the ecosystem, eating grubs, turning over soil, draining soils and holding water.

He believes some mole control is done for aesthetic reasons but concedes they can be a problem on farmland.

Like Barwick, he questions the need to string this up, calling the practice archaic, and suggests there are better ways to count moles.

Simon Lucas is still paying regular visits to his beloved Lake District and says he respects the historical nature of the practice.

He adds that many country folk want to be left alone to breed their sheep and hang their moles and resent outsiders who come to the countryside with different views.

BBC

He concludes that maybe people should be allowed to carry on living as they have for generations.