I’m not speaking of congress.
Here in Ohio, the state is actually urging hunters to kill any they see. And that’s Ohio! In the south I hear they are breeding much faster than sport hunters can diminish them. How about in your area?
yes, more of them than ever. Hardly ever get any kills by hunters, they are so crafty. If we all eat more bacon, perhaps there will be a shortage and more folks will be encouraged to grab their shotgun to check out the woods.
Just read in yesterday’s paper that in Texas there’s 3.5 to 4 million feral pigs on the loose. More and more authorities are trying to put the brakes on the ‘pig bomb’. Locally they’re going to trap and harvest them with the intention of providing them as a food source to the needy.
Anecdotally, I guarantee we’re seeing scads more on the hunting leases I go to. They’re incredibly destructive, tearing up fences, infrastructure, crops, even dirt roads when they wallow.
They’re considered a nuisance here in Texas- I don’t think you even have to have a hunting license to shoot them. At any rate, the hunter safety people strongly encouraged us to shoot any and all feral hogs with anything we could- they didn’t go so far as to actually suggest beating them with sticks and throwing rocks, but it was more or less implied.
There are breeding populations in the eastern end of the county I live in, Ross county, Ohio. I haven’t heard of any anecdotes about them where I live, about 20 miles west. It looks like Texas has been conquered.
My advice is to introduce some Burmese Pythons into the environment. They’re quite effective at cutting down on juvenile pigs.
I know you’re kidding but I do wonder what effect this will have on native predator populations; coyotes, bobcats and mountain lions.
Here’s a good Smithsonian read on the issue.
So far I’ve just used standard bolt action deer hunting rifles on the pigs. The problem though is that usually when you see a group there’ll be one or two larger sows about 40 to 60 lbs and a slew of piglets, maybe 8 to 12 of them. When you start shooting into the group you have about 3 or 4 seconds before they’ll all start to scatter quick towards cover. This then makes an AR a perfect weapon to use in their hunting.
I notice in areas of Texas infested with wild pigs the Bobcats are as thick as city cats in a residential neighborhood. I suspect they feed on the small piglets. Smallish predators that could kill piglets such as coyotes and bob cats may help in controlling them.
California has a plethora. They do enormous crop and field damage, destroy native meadows and forest floors, and generally are horrible. There are professional wild hog hunters here. They use brave, strong dogs – mostly pit bull crosses and curs (curs are a breed or set of breeds from the southern US used on cattle and hogs). Pigs are a worthy prey, being dangerous, fast, and smart, and really need more hunters on them. I don’t know why it isn’t more popular.
It didn’t appeal to me at first because in principal I’m not interested in shooting anything I’m not going to eat and feral pigs, especially the large ones, are pretty nasty out in the field. They smell, are often covered with ticks and fleas and are messy to clean. Really it’s only the small ones I ever hear of anyone at all wanting to eat. But their sheer numbers and growing population have finally necessitated us targeting them, so long as it doesn’t conflict with our hunt for traditional game.
California and Florida will be surrendering soon.
So are these primarily descendants of Spanish pigs let loose way back in the 18th century and before?
Texas hasn’t ever really been a pig farming state, and as far as I know, neither have California or Florida. However, all 3 were originally Spanish colonies back then, and were explored by Spanish explorers.
From the linked Smithsonian article: *
Hogs, wild or otherwise, are not native to the United States. Christopher Columbus introduced them to the Caribbean, and Hernando De Soto brought them to Florida. Texas’ early settlers let pigs roam free until needed; some were never recovered. During wars or economic downturns, many settlers abandoned their homesteads and the pigs were left to fend for themselves. In the 1930s, Eurasian wild boars were brought to Texas and released for hunting. They bred with free-ranging domestic animals and escapees that had adapted to the wild.
And yet wild hogs were barely more than a curiosity in the Lone Star State until the 1980s. It’s only since then that the population has exploded, and not entirely because of the animals’ intelligence, adaptability and fertility. Hunters found them challenging prey, so wild hog populations were nurtured on ranches that sold hunting leases; some captured hogs were released in other parts of the state. Game ranchers set out feed to attract deer, but wild hogs pilfered it, growing more fecund. Finally, improved animal husbandry reduced disease among domestic pigs, thereby reducing the incidence among wild hogs.*
I wish I’d come across some wild pigs. Free bacon! Haven’t seen any in NEO, natch.
At least they are not radioactive!
Not just Spanish pigs. Intermingled with feral domesticated pig populations are Asian and European wild boars, introduced from about 1900 on, which have interbred with the pigs to produce gigantic superhogs.
Partly, at least in the case of California. The Spanish brought pigs with them in the 1700s, a large number of which escaped and went feral. In the 1920s, some landowners introduced the European wild boar which has since crossbred with the feral pigs descended from the Spanish stock.
The problem was aggravated when some geniuses in several locations got the idea to introduce European wild boars into the mix. That happened near my place in East Texas. They fenced in several hundred acres and advertised wild boar hunts. When the paying hunters stayed away in droves, they quit maintaining the fences and the hogs went native. They’ve torn up several acres of pasture on my place.
That looks about right. For the uninitiated, feral hogs are not like the domestic pigs you see on a farm. No, they are truly Satan’s spawn. Two hundred pounds of pure hairy black evil with three-inch spikes poking up from their jaws.
Or, something like that. They are big and heavy, sometimes aggressive, and can do some serious physical damage to people and pets. They are much more of a real danger to humans than either coyotes or bobcats.
Pair 'em up with some prairie dogs and teach them sing Hakuna Matata.