I’ve seen them directly across the road from my house. The things are vile scary creatures and are amazingly destructive. I’ve hunted them before with my SKS because I wanted 10 shots. It turns out that the 7.62x39 just doesn’t have enough power to ensure a clean kill. Next time I’ll use my 30-06.
For those debating suitable calibers to hunt wild pigs with, note that they are one of the animals deemed suitable for spear hunting in Alabama:
http://www.huntwildpig.com/state-specifics/alabama/
I’ve seen them hiking in CA. Generally, they’re not going to bother you, but they’re potentially dangerous, and unpredictable. They post warnings about mountain lions at trailheads around here, but it might actually be worse if you wound up facing an angry full grown feral pig.
Which do you think would win in a fight, especially if either animal could call in help from their group:
A bobcat or a large, feral pig?
Hog easily. A small hog would outweigh the bobcat by at least 150 pounds. A tusk to a vital area would incapacitate the cat quickly.
The bobcat is also likely to be out of range of help. They are fairly solitary, except while breeding. Pigs are social animals.
Bobcats aren’t that big - 20 to 40 pounds, about twice the size of a housecat.