Feral pigs cause extensive damage on US farms

The ever-increasing number of feral pigs in the US is causing extensive damage to that country’s agriculture sector.

According to recent estimates, there were between 6,5 million and nine million feral pigs in at least 30 US states. The pig infestation carried an annual price tag of between US$1,5 billion (about R23 billion) and US$2,5 billion (R38 billion) in damage-control measures.

The US Department of Agriculture referred to the phenomenon as “the feral swine bomb”, according to a recent article on the Modern Farmer website. The animals tore up fields, damaged crops and polluted water sources, causing huge economic losses for farmers. They could also potentially pass on diseases or parasites to other animals or humans. Josh Ritchey, a fourth-generation farmer near Stephenville in Texas, was quoted as saying that feral pigs caused a 10% annual loss in his crops. Some of his neighbours reported losses of as much as 30%.

“The pigs are very opportunistic. They can sniff a crop out right before it’s ready for harvest,” Ritchey said. “Sometimes, I feel like I’m fighting an inferno with a water pistol. There are always more [coming] back a month later.”

The increasing numbers could be ascribed to the enthusiasm for hunting feral pigs, with greater numbers of domestic pigs being released into the wild. In Texas, pigs were one of a few species that could be hunted year-round, and this supported the state’s multibilliondollar sport hunting industry.

While South Africa did not have to deal with feral pigs, damage caused by stray dogs and bush pigs on farms was a growing problem, over and above jackal and caracal, said Leon de Beer, CEO of the National Wool Growers’ Association.

“Bush pigs are causing serious damage to pastures planted by dairy farmers in the Southern Cape, especially along the borders of the national parks in the Knysna area. Huge tracts of irrigated maize, among other crops, planted as animal feed for dairy cows, have been lost to the pigs [in recent times],” he added.

The National Predation Management Forum, in conjunction with South African National Parks and the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, was currently monitoring the situation in the Southern Cape, he said. – Annelie Coleman