'Mythical' white mole killed

A young mole-catcher has snared a "one in 100,000" white mole. Gary Childs, of Abersannan, Dryslwyn, Wales, said he was shocked to find the albino mole in his trap. The 17-year-old has been catching moles for farmers for the past four years. He said this was the first time he had caught one of varying colour.



"I was expecting none or a black one, but then I found a white one, so I was a bit shocked," he said. "I had heard of white moles but I had never seen one." Brian Alderton, founder of the British Traditional Molecatchers Register said white moles were extremely rare. "I've been catching moles for 15 years and I have never caught one — and I have caught thousands of moles," said Mr Alderton.

"I know people who have been catching for 30 years and they have never caught one. They say they are one in 16,000, but I think it is much more than that, I would say one in 100,000. It is extremely rare to catch one and they are extremely valuable — the last albino one to go on eBay fetched £600. And that was stuffed."  Gary started catching moles after the 250-acre family farm suffered problems and has developed it into his own little business.



He charges £10 per mole and estimates that he catches up to 400 a year. "He does it on weekends and when he has days off," said his father, Colin. "He came back with the white one the other day and he was quite excited. I've heard people saying you can get a white one, but they say it is a bit of a myth. Catching moles is an important job because moles can cause problems with silage and can cause listeria in sheep and cattle, which will kill them."