The Origin of the Feral Swine That You Can Hunt with CVA Muzzleloader
To understand why wild pig populations are growing rapidly throughout the country, you have to know the history of feral hogs in this country. A classic example is the pig population found today in south Alabama. The early Spanish explorers in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi and Louisiana brought hogs with them when they came to the New World for exploration and in search of treasure in the 1500s. Not knowing what, if any, animals they would have to eat here, they were keenly aware of the reproductive potential of European hogs. The hogs could survive off the land and provide a constant source of meat for the early explorers. The hogs were herded and rarely, if ever, kept in corrals. Numbers of these hogs strayed and started wild herds.
Many farmers who raised pigs up until the time the fence laws were enacted, allowed the pigs to roam free. They were herded-up during the fall and sold. However, when the fence laws were enacted in the 1930s across much of the country requiring farmers to put hogs, cattle and all domestic animals behind fences, the farmers and ranchers rounded-up as many hogs as possible. But they didn’t worry about the ones remaining in the woods. Because of the strong survival instincts of feral swine and the fact that they usually bedded and hid in thick cover and only moved at night, not only were the hogs able to survive, they thrived, especially in wetlands along creek and river drainages and in swamps. When sportsmen began to get excited about the opportunity to hunt wild pigs, sometimes they trapped and transported hogs into areas where feral swine were rarely, if ever, found, which explains the rapid growth of hog populations nationwide.
You’ve probably heard sportsmen talk about the Russian wild boar that you can hunt with Muzzleloader. In the early 1900s, some enclosures throughout the United States had sportsmen bring-in wild boars from Europe and released them into enclosures to hunt. Some of these wild boars did escape. However, their gene pool has been so depleted now that unless you see a hog with a tag in his ear that says “From Russia with love,” you haven’t taken a Russian boar. One reason that so-many hunters attribute Russian boar status to feral hogs is because of their colors and their teeth. However, understanding why many feral hogs are black or brindle-colored is easy. A white hog, a spotted hog or a hog with a color pattern of anything other than black or brown can be easily spotted by predators when they’re very young. Since foxes, bobcats and coyotes all prey on very-young piglets, the brown and black ones survive better. Wild boar hogs grow teeth in the wild, curved tusks that may grow as long as 7 inches and that are cut from the mouths of domestic pigs at birth. Wild hogs use these tusks, also known as canine teeth, for defense and to establish dominance for breeding.
Although wild pigs are fun to hunt, because they aren’t native to this country and don’t really have a place in our ecosystem, they are highly destructive. Dr. Steve Ditchkoff, associate professor of wildlife at Auburn University, headed-up the first national conference on wild pigs a couple of years ago, with 32 U.S. and Australian researchers attending. He reports that, “Nationwide, feral hogs are a growing problem and now in at least 40 states. In the Midwest, feral-hog problems are in their infancy. But researchers are predicting that before long, the Midwest, the Bread Basket of America, will have as severe a feral-hog problem as the southeastern U.S.” Ditchkoff explains that feral hogs compete with native wildlife for food and often monopolize acorn and soft-mast crops. Feral hogs also eat turtles, reptiles, and amphibians – including endangered toads and lizards. Feral hogs even have had a devastating impact on sea turtle nests. Florida’s Eglin Air Force Base contains some of the largest tracts of the 1% of Florida’s seepage slopes that remain. Feral swine damage has threatened this wetland habitat, costing $5.3 million in 2-years time. In some parts of Texas, landowners consider wild hogs as the second-worst predator, after the coyote, on newborn livestock. Ditchkoff says, “Feral hogs can destroy complete ecosystems. For instance, in Hawaii, where fresh water is a very-precious commodity, feral hogs can alter water flow and nutrient cycling to disrupt the quality of the water, costing Hawaii billions each year. I don’t believe we have a full grasp yet of how destructive the growing feral-hog population will be on nutrient cycling, water quality and direct predation on individual species. In Hawaii, hogs actually have caused the extinction of certain species, and this potential exists here on the mainland.”
As you can see, feral hogs pose a threat not only to landowners and hunters, but to our way of life. Therefore, CVA encourages all muzzleloader hunters to take every opportunity to hunt, harvest and eat feral hogs. In so doing, you’re not only feeding your family and having a great opportunity to hunt all year long, but you’re also contributing to good conservation practices and helping our fragile environment. Shoot feral hogs, and eat wild pork.