Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Wild boar cause problems and serious damage.

Damage caused by wild hogs has been reportedin many states. Crops commonly damaged by feral hogs include rice, sorghum, wheat,corn, soybeans, peanuts, potatoes, watermelon and
cantaloupe. One of the most common types of damage to these crops occurs when the hogs root in the fields. Hogs not only consume, but also trample the crops.
Hog predation on livestock is a serious problem in some states. Wild hogs kill and consume
lambs and kid goats, especially during lambing andkidding seasons. Physical evidence of hog predation may be hard to detect because the entire animal may be consumed. Ewes and nannies with swollen udders but no nursing lambs or kids may bean indication of hog predation. Hog tracks and droppings may aid in identifying the predator. If hog predation occurs when kids and lambs are larger, the entire carcass may be turned inside out, leaving the hide with little or no flesh except on the head, neck and hooves.




With hogs, the problems are numerous.
Habitat destruction : Wild hogs are rooters and wallowers, and their feeding and wallowing activities destroy terrestrial and aquatic vegetation, ruin water holes used by other wildlife, and contribute to erosion and siltation, which can adversely affect water quality.



Ground nesting bird predation:


Hogs are omnivores and eat anything that gets in their way. This includes nests of ground nesting birds, such as turkeys, quail, terns, and many other birds.



Damage to endangered or sensitive plant/animal communities:


Many sensitive habitats are small and fragile, such as the unique acid seeps in portions of the Ouachita mountains and the cedar glades in the Ozarks. These places are attractive to Wild hogs, and they cause major, sometime irreparable, damage.



Disease transmission to domestic livestock and pets:


wild hogs carry brucellosis, which has been documented to have been transmitted from wild hogs to domestic stock, pseudorabies, which causes domestic pigs to abort, and other diseases. These problems can result in direct economic loss and indirect loss through quarantines.



Disease transmission to humans:


There have been cases documented in Arkansas of Wild hogs transmitting diseases such as brucellosis and trichinosis to humans, either directly or indirectly.



Direct food competition with native wildlife:


One of the mainstays for many wildlife species is acorns. Deer, squirrels, ducks, turkeys, birds, bears and many other species depend on acorns for a significant part of their diet. Hogs also love acorns, and are very efficient at finding them (in the process, incidentally, tearing up wildlife habitat).



Crop depredation:


A hog in a cornfield is every bit as, destructive as a hog in a woodlot. Hogs often cause heavy damage to row crops; gardens, flower beds, pine plantations, orchards, tree farms and pastures.

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