Coast Mole in California

Scapanus orarius

Native to California SNR Unranked in California

Not listed as nonindigenous in California by USGS NAS; native to its California range.

IUCN Red List status

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Photo: Riley Pollom · CC BY 4.0Coast Mole (Scapanus orarius)Photo: Grant Chovil · CC BY 4.0Coast Mole (Scapanus orarius)Photo: Sam Beaumont · CC BY 4.0Coast mole on bare soil facing the camera, showing spade-like front paws and pink snout

Coast Mole in California, by the numbers

Occasional in California 153rd most recorded of 233 mammals logged in California

44 occurrence records

42 with iNaturalist photos

Records from 2000–2026.

44 total records count every California occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 41; the monthly chart covers the 41 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Coast Mole in California

Most sightings fall in March to August.

41 California occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly California records (table)

Month	Records
January	1
February	1
March	4
April	5
May	6
June	5
July	6
August	4
September	2
October	3
November	2
December	2

Monthly coast mole occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in California, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in California, with recorded sightings peaking in March–August.

Occurrence map

Where Coast Mole has been recorded in California

41 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

41 California records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monument	iNaturalist records
Redwood National Park	9
Mad River Slough Wildlife Area	2
Patrick's Point State Park	2
Trinidad State Beach	2
Hendy Woods State Park	1
Headwaters Forest Reserve	1
Jackson Demonstration State Forest	1

Protected places with the most coast mole sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in California

County	Records
Humboldt County	36
Mendocino County	3
Del Norte County	2
Other localities	3

The complete county distribution, spread across 3 California counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Coast Mole records in California fit moist forest, brush, and meadow along the Pacific side of the state.

Reports center on the redwood belt and Coast Ranges, with some records extending into the Sierra Nevada. They show where people have documented the species, and they don’t rank California’s best habitat.

Reports rise most clearly in Mar–Apr, Jul–Aug. That pattern can reflect animal movements, weather, and observer effort, so it isn’t a population count.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Full species profile Coast Mole Scapanus orarius Size 12.3 cm4.8 in Weight 62 g2.2 oz Lifespan Up to 3 yr View the full profile

More mammals in California in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"