The animals are often crossbreeds that combine the survival skills of wild Eurasian boars with the size and high fertility of domestic swine to create a "super pig" that's spreading out of control.

An exploding population of hard-to-eradicate “super pigs” in Canada is threatening to spill south of the border, and northern states like Minnesota, North Dakota and Montana are taking steps to stop the invasion.

In Canada, the wild pigs roaming Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba pose a new threat. They are often crossbreeds that combine the survival skills of wild Eurasian boars with the size and high fertility of domestic swine to create a “super pig” that’s spreading out of control.

Ryan Brook, a professor at the University of Saskatchewan and one of Canada’s leading authorities on the problem, calls feral swine, “the most invasive animal on the planet” and “an ecological train wreck.”

  • mctoasterson@reddthat.com
    394·
    9 months ago

    Just declare open season and no bag limit on pigs in all northern states. I guarantee you all the Bubbas and outdoorsmen will take care of it.

    • Cianalas@lemmy.world
      23·
      9 months ago

      They’re not able to keep up with the breeding in Texas, and there’s even helicopter tours where you can try and wipe out whole herds at a time.

      • TopRamenBinLaden@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
        9·
        9 months ago

        I have seen this in Louisiana, too. They will use helicopters(I even saw one mounted with a light machine gun) and gun down hundreds at a time. It still isn’t enough, and they have a lot of Bubbas down there hunting them in one way or another.

      • OrteilGenou@lemmy.world
        4·
        9 months ago

        Right, under Canadian gun laws, so they’re plinking them with bolt action .308s

        Wait til SuperPork wanders into AR country…

        • shalafi@lemmy.worldEnglish
          3·
          9 months ago

          Actually, some states ban hunting with AR-15’s because the round isn’t deadly enough for a clean kill.

          My smart-assed comparison:

          https://imgur.com/a/kolUESz

          But to be fair, if you want to engage multiple targets, the AR is far more controllable.

    • ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      20·
      9 months ago

      In many states it is, not just northern. Iirc Texas will pay you to take an AR into a field and take out as many as you can. People even organize hunts from helicopters hunting herds like they should have Fortunate Son playing (no full auto though just ARs and typically BYOAR and ammo iirc.)

                • ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                  5·
                  9 months ago

                  Well you’d need an AR-10 lower, upper, BCG, dust cover, barrel, barrel nut, handguard, bolt catch, gas block, buffer weight, lpk, mag catch (unless DPMS AR-10, they fit the AR-15 mag catch), and muzzle device, making it an AR-10.

                  The triggers, hammers, stocks, grips, tubes, mag rel buttons, and safties are interchangable though, yes.

        • ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com
          6·
          9 months ago

          Not in the US, unless you have proof I haven’t seen. They literally don’t need to, as per the article they already breed faster in the wild than we can kill them, seems like a waste of money to breed them when you can just use the wild ones that are already there.

          • rekliner@lemmy.world
            3·
            9 months ago

            They are bred with domestic pigs so they have less survival instinct and the clients can find them (i.e. they don’t avoid blinds and feeders). One-off clients would give your ranch bad reviews if they didn’t see anything all weekend. Meanwhile regular hunters understand truly wild animals can elude you for days. If a visiting group has come up dry all weekend they might even release a sacrificial domestic pig (just out of sight) that will then walk right towards the clients, innocently arranging it’s own death. Source: am Texan who hunted pigs.

              • rekliner@lemmy.world
                2·
                9 months ago

                “just out of sight” was an exaggeration. They could be on the other end of the property to release a pig and its going to head towards the feed and the people… Just like a hungry dog would. Also, blinds usually face a single direction.

          • afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
            2·
            9 months ago

            I am just shocked. The South is pretty freaken good at authentic BBQ and they have a wild boar problem. Can’t you guys just like eat them all?

            • ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com
              6·
              9 months ago

              I mean it isn’t like none get eaten, just not all of them. It isn’t just regular hunting, it’s basically an Emu War but instead of the Aus military it’s militias of angry farmers tired of hogs tearing up their crops.

            • Cianalas@lemmy.world
              2·
              9 months ago

              They reach maturity fast, are basically always fertile, short gestational periods, and have large litters. It’s like trying to eradicate mice/rats by shooting them.

  • Xero@lemmy.worldEnglish
    331·
    9 months ago

    “Super pigs” — called the “most invasive animal on the planet”

    Human: Look what they need to mimic a fraction of our power

      • Stalinwolf@lemmy.ca
        112·
        9 months ago

        REEEEE! Absholuutely, what thish guy RRRREEEEEEE shaid… Tashtes like sssshhiiit…

    • Ticklemytip@lemmy.world
      7·
      9 months ago

      I’ve seen a little video on them. Apparently their meat is not good for consumption and tastes horrible due to their diet. But I’ve never tried super pig before, so right now it’s only speculation.

      • nova_ad_vitum@lemmy.ca
        4·
        9 months ago

        Apparently their meat is not good for consumption and tastes horrible due to their diet

        I wonder how much selection pressure humans are applying in favour of this trait, since it’s the ultimate defence against human predation . One of the best defences that Canada geese have is that they taste terrible too.

      • halferect@lemmy.world
        1·
        9 months ago

        If they are anything like the wild boars in Texas they are incredibly gamey, which some people don’t mind and others can’t stand. I’m sure that there is a way to prepare them that makes them more palletable

  • firewyre@lemmy.world
    315·
    9 months ago

    I love problems we can eat our way out of… if we almost wiped out the buffalo these little shits shouldn’t be an issue.

    • Donkter@lemmy.world
      51·
      9 months ago

      A problem I’ve heard with them is that they’re super smart. You trap one boar in a bear trap or something and that’s the only boar you’re catching from that region with that same type of trap.

      • Kornblumenratte@feddit.de
        2·
        9 months ago

        100 %. Well, probably it’ll become sort of a frozen conflict and a steady income for the ammunition industry, sort of a lose (US) — lose (boars) — win (ammunition industry) situation.

        The only enemy boars have to fear is influenza.

    • Liz@midwest.socialEnglish
      2·
      9 months ago

      It is when it’s fucking up everything else and not really free in that they take a lot of effort to find and kill. Pigs are very smart.

    • Texas_Hangover@lemm.ee
      201·
      9 months ago

      In Texas we can shoot 'em from helicopters with fully automatic weapons. (Seriously) 🤠

      • NOT_RICK@lemmy.worldEnglish
        10·
        9 months ago

        Do you play Panama by Van Halen while you do it? Cause I’m imagining that right now.

      • I Cast Fist@programming.devEnglish
        1·
        9 months ago

        It’s one of those things that could really only happen in 'murica 😆

        Unless there’s a lot of clear view of the herds (not many places for the pigs to hide from sight), that sounds counterproductive. Then again, I really don’t know squat about Texas other than stereotypes. Mostly barren desert? What about rocky outcrops?

        • Texas_Hangover@lemm.ee
          21·
          9 months ago

          No rocky outcrops, west Texas is a barren wasteland like you’re thinking, but in east Texas, we have some pretty good forest action going on.

    • shalafi@lemmy.worldEnglish
      3·
      9 months ago

      I have a pig and they’re too smart. You can catch a load of them, but if any get away, and some will, they will not come near that trap again.

    • Socsa@sh.itjust.works
      1·
      9 months ago

      No, we made fun of the fact that the dude was imagining himself going full Doom through an ocean of pig blood to reach his kids on the other side.