Talpa europaea (1) Mole Skull Mammalia Insectivora Soricomorpha Talpidae

European Mole Skull Talpa europaea cm 3.5 Mammalia Insectivora Soricomorpha Talpidae, complete of mandibile, only a piece, as in photos.
Family: Talpidae.
Common name: European Mole, Common Mole, or Northern Mole.

The Mole (Talpa europaea Linnaeus, 1758) is a soricomorphic mammal belonging to the Talpid family. 3 subspecies are known.
Its range is the largest among all the species of the genus. In Italy it is present from the Alps to Umbria and Tuscany.
In the Alps it is sometimes sympatric with Talpa caeca; in central Italy its range has a narrow contact zone with that of the Roman mole.
It is up to 20cm long including the code and weighs from 60 to 120g. The fur is fine, velvety and uniform in color, predominantly black, the ears are invisible and have no auricles.
The front legs are very developed, wide, massive and equipped with very robust nails. The body morphology is particularly suitable for underground life and digging: well-protected eyes and ears, "aerodynamic" shape with a very pointed snout, specialized legs for digging. The softness of the fur can also be an adaptation to life in the tunnels, making even backward movement easy.
It is a solitary animal that spends most of its time in a complex system of underground tunnels, some deeper, located 15–25 cm from the surface, used as permanent shelters, others more superficial, almost at ground level, which they use as hunting ground and which can cover an area of 600–900 m².
It does not have sight, but has an extremely developed sense of smell, hearing and touch. The snout, front legs and tail are equipped with sensitive vibrissae, while the end of the snout is rich in Eimer's organs, small sensory organelles of epidermal origin.
The mole does not hibernate, and feeds on invertebrates that populate the subsoil: earthworms (80% of the diet), larvae and insects, snails, etc.
Reproduction occurs once a year with the birth of 4-6 young. The average life expectancy of a Talpa europaea is 4-6 years.
Due to their habit of digging tunnels, moles can cause aesthetic damage to gardens and lawns, but also economic damage in agricultural areas.