Ok. Holes again. This time these holes are in the front yard where there is tons of grass. However, these holes are bigger. Basically, the holes are not open holes that you step in rather there will be a small pile of dirt. Dig the dirt away and you have a nice 1/2 fist sized hole into the ground. I have these all over the front yard. Are these moles? The holes seem smaller than what I imagine for a mole. I don't live in a rural area so I didn't consider that there are moles in the yard. Is there some sort of creature digging these evil holes everywhere? Any recommendations on stopping this?

Oh yeah - one more thing. In the front yard where the holes are there seems to be a lot of 'soft spots' when walking around. They don't necessarily coorespond to where the holes are but I have a strong feeling they are linked.

yes, we live in town too and none of our neighbors seemed to have been infested with turantulas, but we were. some of them were HUGE some smaller.
I know you are not supposed to kill them but we did get rid of most of them. We live on about 1/3 acre in town and have 3 small kids. There were just too many of them. they came out of nowhere and seemed to appear almost overnight.
good luck

TARANTULAS!!!!!!!

ACK!!! I hope not!

router, I have holes too.............and a friend has suggested they might be Cicada Killer Wasps

but I'm not sure, because the holes are about the size you describe, which seems too large for a wasp???

ugh!!!!! at least turantulas are not poisonous- killer wasps?? are you serious? wasps that make holes in the ground?
now im afraid.
yes- turantulas make holes- lots of holes and i believe the network them! too- yuck.

well these wasps are beneficials, I've read

they only kill Cicadas, not people!

they don't even sting unless cornered, but whatever it is is making rather huge holes in the turf

If you'll use the "search" feature that appears on most of these Dirt Doctor pages you'll find lots of information about these various insects. A simple search in Google will bring tons more, from universities, extension offices, and elsewhere. You owe it to the health of your yard, and consequently, your own health, to learn what these things are before you kill them. Teach the children to recognize the tarantula holes, the cicada wasp or tarantula hawk holes, the cicada shells on trees, and you'll be raising children who are comfortable with the nature around them and won't instinctively kill anything that moves.

It's depressing to read this thread about various interesting insects and arachnids, peppered as it is with "yuck" and "ewwww" responses. It is possible to get beyond those reactions.

We go for a walk some evenings just after dusk, flashlight in hand, and walk slowly around the yard to see what kind of activity is going on back there. You can make your yard into a toxic battleground that isn't good for anything, or you can find the magic for yourself and your children.

Sounds like the cicada killer wasps that I have in my garden. They dig holes and leave quite a large pile of dirt. They lay their eggs in the holes and drop off cicadas for the larvae to eat after they close the hole up for winter. I haven't figured out how to get rid of them yet besides digging up their holes--just be careful if one is in there when you dig it up. Supposedly they don't sting unless really ticked off. Unfortunately, they seem to dig a new holes.

I found a good description and photo:
www.uky.edu/Ag/Entomology/entfacts/misc/ef004.htm www.uky.edu/Ag/Entomology/entfacts/misc/ef004ci2.htm