Multiheaded Approach Required for Locating and Addressing Eurasian Wild Boar Control

The Coordinator of Squeal of on Pigs Manitoba says, when it comes to locating and controlling wild pigs, a multi faceted approach is necessary.Squeal on Pigs Manitoba is a collaborative effort involving the different partners who have a stake in wild pig control in Manitoba and is supported by the federal and provincial governments and the swine industry.

Squeal on Pigs Manitoba Coordinator Dr. Wayne Lees says, because of its colder climate and more challenging environment, wild pig populations in Canada are less concentrated than in warmer regions, such as the United States or Australia, so the biggest challenge is locating the animals.

Quote-Dr. Wayne Lees-Squeal on Pigs Manitoba:

In Canada our wild pig situation is broken down into two categories.One is escaped domestic or pet pigs but those are really a minor problem.The most significant wild pig problem relates to Eurasian wild boar and they were the pigs that were brought in the 1980s as a way to diversify agriculture but unfortunately a number of those pigs escaped and established breeding populations in the wild.What we've learned through our field experiences is that there is no magic bullet.

Not one single technique will suffice in all situations.That's why we use a multiheaded approach where we'll collect information from the public in areas where we think there might be wild pigs.We'll scout that with a thermal imaging drone, we'll also set out trail cameras and, if there's an area, especially where there aren't too many people, we'll collect water samples to see if we  can identify pig DNA in the water.All of those techniques have to be combined before we can either confirm that there are pigs in that area or say there are probably not pigs here and so we can move onto other spots.

Dr. Lees notes the major focus for Eurasian wild boar control in Manitoba is the Spruce Woods area located southeast of Brandon.Anyone interested in learning more about wild pig control or in reporting a sighting is invited to visit squealonpigsmb.org.