Feral pigs still on Alyth Hill and beyond

Feral pigs are still in the east Perthshire area, according to Scottish Natural Heritage, but remain elusive.

The government-funded body responsible for looking after Scotland’s nature and landscapes hosted a public meeting in Alyth in April to discuss the issue of feral pigs in the area.

At the meeting, which was attended by around 30 people, farmers and land owners were advised that they could shoot any wild boar or feral pigs on their land.

Following that meeting, SNH have received a few new reports of the animals at large.

It was reported at the meeting that feral pigs had been seen in woods between Creuchies and Tullymurdoch to the north-west of Alyth.

Since then, none have been seen at that location and camera traps have now been set to try to establish if they are still there.

SNH also reported that on Alyth Hill, in the Whiteside enclosure managed by Forest Enterprise, the one remaining animal known to be present has had a litter.

Forest Enterprise had previously shot 12 animals on Alyth Hill.

There have also been sightings of pigs further west – between Blairgowrie and Dunkeld – although these could have come from another source and not be related to the Alyth population.

Feral pigs are animals that may resemble wild boar, but are a mix of wild and domestic pigs and have been released or escaped from private collections. Wild boar became extinct in Great Britain about 700 years ago.

SNH would like to reassure the public that it is unlikely that they will encounter feral pigs in Scotland because of their low numbers and because they are mainly nocturnal.

If anyone does see a feral pig, the advice is to walk away from the animal slowly, not to feed them and to keep dogs on leads.

Sightings of feral pigs should be reported to the Scotland’s Environmental and Rural Services (SEARS) customer service line 08452 302050 or to directly to SNH at www.brc.ac.uk/irecord