Pigs Gone Wild

VA beaches are host to lots of visitors during the year but here is one that arrived way back in the 1600s and decided to stay—the pig. After all that time, the little porkers (they only reach 100 pounds or so unlike hogs that can go to half a ton) are suddenly a problem? What are they doing that is so bad?

tearing up sensitive beach lands with their tusks and threatening rare plants at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge…
Feral hogs pose a public health threat because they are capable of carrying brucellosis and rabies. In Back Bay and False Cape, though, Duncan found no such diseases in any of the hogs he sampled between January and March.

Hey, at least they’re not breaking into homes the way NJ black bears are.

Could it be that in the past human hunting activities kept the numbers of pigs quite low and now that hunting is restrictive the populations are exploding?

Did I say exploding?

Duncan conducted a study in which all 16 female pigs that were examined were either pregnant or lactating. "When 100 percent of your sample is successfully breeding, that's an incredible sign that your population is doing quite well," he said.

Yeah, I’d say 100% pregnancy rate was indicative of an exploding population.
What is the remedy for this sudden increase in porcine rooters?

They include expanding annual hunts, trapping and removing some of the animals, and baiting and killing a certain number each year and donating the meat to homeless shelters….
For years, the preserves have allowed limited hunts to curb hog numbers. About 60 hunters participated in October's hunt.

The one disturbing thing in this report is that the authorities seem to have no idea as to the size of the population. How can they begin to implement a control program without a starting reference? I volunteer to go do some live trapping and population sampling if they want me. All I ask is to be able to keep every tenth piggy that comes my way. Make some wicked luau, man!