Blind mole
Head of the blind mole
The Blind Mole ( Talpa caeca ) is a mammal of the family of moles ( Talpidae ) within the order of insectivores ( Eulipotyphla ). The small and spatially non-contiguous ( disjoint ) European range of the species includes the southwestern part of the Alps, the Apennines to the southern tip of Italy and parts of it isolated the Western Balkans. The species is not endangered.
Mark
The blind mole is smaller than the similar European mole and the other is also partially sympatric species Roman mole ( Talpa romana ) and Balkan mole ( T. Stankovici ). The head-body length is 95-140 mm, tail length 20-43 mm and the length of the hind foot 15-18 mm. Animals weighing 29 to 120 g, the eyes are covered by a membrane. The coat is black. The rostrum is longer and narrower than in the other sympatric mole species, other differences relate to the situation of the infraorbital foramen and shape and size of certain teeth.
Distribution and habitat
The relatively small European distribution area of the blind mole comprises the southwestern part of the Alps, the Apennines to the southern tip of Italy and are insulated parts of the Western Balkans between the Neretva River in Bosnia - Herzegovina and the Gulf of Corinth in Greece. It inhabits deciduous forests, meadows and pastures. In karst areas, the occurrence is limited to areas with deep soils. In the Balkans, where the blind mole occurs together with the European Mole, the latter inhabits the humid and deep soils, while the blind mole is forced onto drier and rocky soils. The Blind Mole is largely restricted to the mountains and get there before at altitudes from 400 to 2000 m.
Way of life
The way of life apparently largely corresponds to that of the European mole.
Inventory and risk
The blind mole can be locally common, evidence of population decline, there is not. The world stock shall, according to IUCN as uncritical ( " least concern ").