The Pigs are Out of Control

Wild pigs near South San Jose (Mulligan/Merc)

Wolves, mountain lions, coyotes, and bears are all encroaching on human habitats (some argue that we are encroaching on them), but wild pigs appear to be causing the most damage.

A steady increase in the population of wild pigs — a marauding, non-native animal that can grow sharp tusks and weigh 250 pounds or more — is causing growing problems for parks, water districts and homeowners across the Bay Area.

The hogs wallow in streams, dig up lawns and gardens, eat endangered plants and animals and occasionally charge at people. They carry diseases like swine fever and can spread pathogens like E. coli to crops in farm fields.

“We’ve seen the impacts increasing,” said Doug Bell, wildlife program manager at the East Bay Regional Park District in Oakland. “They are omnivores. They vacuum up California quail, Alameda whipsnakes and other wildlife. They eat everything. They’ll come in and destroy lawns and all your landscaping overnight. Sometimes people can be hurt by them. We had a hiker who was run over by a wild boar and injured her leg. A firefighter was knocked down by one in 2020. They can be frightening.”

Unlike other animals, the pigs don't have any defenders, and counties and agencies are allowing hunting and even paying to have the pigs killed.

The animals are legal for sport hunters to shoot, like deer or ducks. Last year, 3,327 wild pigs were reported killed by hunters in California, according to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

But their population keeps growing. Females can have up to two litters per year, with as many as 10 piglets per litter...

In December, East Bay Parks published a plan it compiled with other agencies to do more. The study showed that the animals, found commonly around Mount Diablo, Calaveras Reservoir and the Dublin Hills, would grow tenfold without a hunting and trapping program.

It recommended agencies work together to use drones with thermal imaging to track the pigs at night, fit some with GPS collars, put fencing around sensitive areas — although that can cost $20,000 a mile and block other wild animals — collect better data, and enlist the public’s help through a hotline or website to report sightings.

“We are trying to go from being reactive to proactive in the wider region,” Bell said.

In the South Bay, the Santa Clara Valley Water District in December signed a five-year, $125,000 contract with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to trap and kill wild pigs on land it owns at Anderson Reservoir and Coyote Ridge east of San Jose.

Perhaps some day there will be sufficient demand for wild pig meat to cause profit-seeking game hunters to keep the population at equilibrium. Control will require more than delicious dishes, however; California diners need to believe their food choices are saving the planet. Let the PR campaign begin.