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  Queen gives royal nod to mole patrol
Updated 31 January 2002, 15.39
A mole
The man who catches moles for the Queen has been given the royal seal of approval.

Fact File
Moles
Moles are not totally blind - they have tiny eyes covered with hairy skin
Their fave food is worms
Moles can burrow through 13lbs of earth every 20 minutes
In the early 1900s, moleskin clothes were very fashionable and lots of moles were killed
Victor Williamson has been chasing the pesky creatures around Her Majesty's estate in Sandringham for the last 10 years, and now he's been given a royal warrant.

This means he has the right to call himself the Queen's official mole-catcher.

Careful of the corgis

Mr Williamson's van now bears the proud sign: 'By Appointment of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II Mole Controller'.

Victor Williamson's royal van sign
The royal 'mole' crest

The Queen has a big problem with moles at Sandringham, where there are more than 20,000 acres of ground for them to burrow through.

But Mr Williamson has to obey one royal request - he's not allowed to use poison to kill the moles - in case the corgis eat it by mistake.

So Mr Williamson lays traps in the moles' tunnels instead, which is a standard way to kill the garden pests.

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