Wild Pig Populations in U.S. Can Be Managed
Published:16 Nov.2023 Source:University of Georgia
Pigs were introduced to the United States centuries ago as a food source and quickly established wild populations. Feral domestic pigs bred with purebred Eurasian boar that were introduced for hunting, and hybridized wild pigs spread across the landscape due to prolific reproductive rates and a willingness to eat just about anything. Through their destructive foraging habits, wild pigs cause extensive damages to crops across the country. Populations exploded in the late 1980s and early 1990s, causing a substantial increase in damages to agricultural producers.
Most studies estimate that you need to remove 40% to 60% of a wild pig population each year to maintain or significantly reduce a population, and they exceeded that threshold. With sustained management the population should continue to shrink over the next several years. However, what is unknown is how quickly the population will recover if management efforts cease. Researcher attributes the population explosion to a few explanations, including humans illegally moving wild pigs to the areas where hunting them is legal year-round, as well as to warmer climates in recent decades.
Recent conservation efforts have proven effective at controlling wild pig populations in the Southeastern United States, according to new research. Within 24 months of the start of control efforts in the study area located around the Savannah River Site in Aiken, South Carolina, researchers found a reduction of about 70% in relative abundance of pigs and a corresponding decline in environmental rooting damage of about 99%.