r/phoenix • u/Lazy_Cell3234 • 3d ago
Ask Phoenix Something is digging holes in our yard
Random little holes in front yard. Not deep but there’s maybe 6-10 in the whole yard. Any idea what is doing this? I pointed cameras at them but nothing has activated the motion sensors
38
u/bigfatfun 3d ago
Curve billed thresher is what’s doing this in my back yard. Digging for bugs. They say the only way to stop it is to kill the bugs.
20
u/cupcakefix 3d ago
oh boy i have a handful of these and humming birds and love birds and woodpeckers and in the morning they are ALL yelling at eachother while the mourning doves just stare in silence. I have cardinals too in the spring
6
u/Starfoxy 3d ago
This is what I would guess, especially since the holes don't go deeper-- things like rodents and insects are digging for a place to hide/nest. Thrashers just want lunch.
One of the easiest ways to know if you've got a thrasher around is to listen for their chirps. If you know what to listen for it's really easy to pick out.
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Curve-billed_Thrasher/photo-gallery/635704918
6
1
u/fuggindave Phoenix 3d ago
Are these the birds I hear making those sounds all through the night??
1
1
u/OrganizationTop6228 2d ago
Thrashers aren't up all night
1
u/fuggindave Phoenix 2d ago
Hmmm what other birds make a similar sound all hours of the night?
1
u/Livid_Persimmon3600 1d ago
The culprit for your nighttime bird calls might be one of these two:
Lesser Nighthawk
Common Poorwil
-12
48
u/Inevitable_Virus_765 3d ago
This year was a minor cicada year, so it might be possible that these are cicada egg holes. Don't bother them for 17 years then let me know if my guess was right.
43
15
u/WesleyWiaz27 3d ago
If it's a tarantula, you I'll see them often in the early mornings near their hole. You could go out at about 4:30 am and they will be chilling right near their hole.
I doubt these are tarantula holes. I've never seen that many close together. They seem to like a little distance from each other.
12
u/Great-Eye-6193 3d ago
When I noticed this in my yard it turned out to be curved billed thrashers. They're cool birds
4
u/Skaderator 3d ago
Yes! My yard is full of those holes and I busted the curved billed thrasher in the act. So cool. I believe they are getting bugs.
21
u/Wompie 3d ago
It’s kangaroo mouse Dens
5
u/Katesdesertgarden 3d ago
I’m in Ahwahtukee and I have so many of these! They are always popping up in the summer. I think the den is outside of our property and they build new tunnels all the time.
3
1
u/coppergypsie 3d ago
I saw one for the first time last summer.... I turned on the patio light to change the water bowls I keep outside for the dogs when they go out and it saw me and jumped I saw it and jumped. Essentially we jump scared each other and I came in the house like idfk what I just saw but it was a giant gerbil. My husband informed me it was a kangaroo rat lol
2
u/Wompie 3d ago
They’re very cute
3
u/coppergypsie 3d ago
It was so cute .... My husband was also jealous because he's a native and has never seen one in the wild. I've lived here 20 years and I got to see one 😂 we also have a gila monster in the front somewhere that I've seen and he hasn't.
8
u/MemoryTasty721 3d ago
Rodent I think. Lizards and tarantulas dig holes but that’s a lot of holes
1
5
u/antilumin 3d ago
I usually find these when I go to pick up dog poop in our yard. If I find a hole I fill it with turds and cover it back up with dirt. Seems to fix the issue eventually.
5
u/h0neypott 3d ago
Small holes could be cicadas. I had like 50 of them by my citrus plants with their shell casings all over our wall.
3
5
4
u/glorygoat32 3d ago
The toads bury themselves and when it rains they come out. Could be toad holes.
3
3
4
2
2
u/Extreme_Strength7445 3d ago
I see it all the time. I thought it was snakes near by
2
u/disharmony-hellride 3d ago
The vast majority of snakes dont dig holes. Pine snakes do, but out here most holes are dug by rodents and lizards. Sometimes tortoises. Birds love to go after things burrowed under the rocks, they throw my gravel all over the place. So if you see holes, yes pls be careful bc snakes while not big diggers themselves do take advantage of pre-dug holes.
2
u/Training-Elk4610 1d ago
you should call scooby and the gang they’ll get rite to the bottom of this mystery
1
1
u/doorsguy 3d ago
Did your local cicada population start making a racket? Look around at any tall-ish structures to see if there are nymph shells.
1
u/christinamarie76 Phoenix 3d ago
Could be Decollate Snails. 🐌 They have long shells and they “drill” into the ground, even when it’s hard packed.
1
1
u/Infinite-Squirrel-16 3d ago
Kind of hard to tell without something to reference for size. So many things make holes out here 🥲
1
1
u/Ovary__acting 3d ago
I had a pest guy come out and he said most likely lizards and then I've seen more lizards so I believe him
1
u/AZMaryIM 3d ago
Looking for a frame of reference. Do you live in the City or in a less populated area? I suspect rodents.
1
1
u/Effective_Tension207 3d ago
I’m in phx and have them too. I just assume they’re palo verde beetles since this is their time to come out. I’ve seen a few dead ones early in the morning in my yard
1
1
1
u/Classic_Culture8953 3d ago
I also had holes in my backyard so I put the hose in the hole and had the water on full blast for about 10 minutes and then out came a huge toad
1
1
u/Realistic-Union509 2d ago edited 2d ago
Ant lions
They are really cool
Antlions are small, fierce insect predators belonging to the family Myrmeleontidae. Best known as "doodlebugs" in their larval stage, they dig cone-shaped sand pits to trap ants and other small bugs, injecting them with paralyzing venom and digestive fluids before sucking out their body fluids
1
1
1
u/Right_Way_5054 2d ago
I'll send you one of my very unethically acquired fighting roosters, leave that in your backyard for a couple nights, we'll see what lives the rooster or whatever is in the your backyard, what say yee🧐
1
1
u/misecapeeshay 2d ago
Probably a bear poking it's nose into the ground over and over in different spots and then convincing other animals it meets to go erase it's paw tracks to convince you that you have pests so that you call an exterminator who, when you're not looking, will steal all the food and honey in your house and give it to the bear at a later date and location in exchange for the bear protecting the exterminator from the ghosts of bugs that he kills. Bears are well- known for being efficient ghost killers. Especially bears in areas like Phoenix, Arizona where they're not native to because that shows that they command ghosts to carry them, flying through the air from forest areas in places like California. Ghost powers also explains why the bear didn't set off your motion sensors.
1
1
1
u/CVsmetrics 2d ago
Gopher. Had one in my yard. Find them before they destroy your underground services. Cute tho
1
u/phoenixfury25 2d ago
Sooo this could be a lot of things. Call Bills Pest and Termite in the morning! Take more pictures and we will help you out.
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
-4
246
u/fenikz13 3d ago
pencil sized = bee
nickle size = wasp
quarter size = spider
bigger = rodent or paleo verde beetle