Pigs In The Park

Feral pigs (Sus scrofa), also known as wild pigs, wild hogs, wild boars, European wild boars, Russian wild boars, or razorbacks, are rangy-looking non-native members of the domestic swine family, Suidae. These transplants native to Europe and Asia are aggressive mammals posing serious ecological, economic, aesthetic, medical and veterinary threats. Feral pigs have recently been sighted in Cuyamaca Rancho State Park and they are not welcome.
Feral pigs have poor eyesight, so you may come upon them on a walk or ride and get fairly close before they react to you. That’s the problem. They scare easily and once scared they react as many mammals do, they either run or fight. This could be a big issue if you are on horse back or even hiking. Please be aware that we have only seen signs of pigs in the park we have not seen the actual animal. But be prepared just in case.
The really fun part of Sus scrofa is that they are very hard to remove, once established. They live from about 15 to 25 years. Feral pigs, similar to people, can mate any time of the year. If a sow is not bred during the two or three days she is in estrus (in heat), she will become sexually receptive again 21 days later. Generally pigs mate during two peak breeding seasons: one in winter (December through February) and another in early summer.
Sexual maturity and reproductive ability of feral pigs greatly depend upon nutrition and habitat. Under optimal conditions, sows can begin breeding at 6 months of age, and produce up to 4 litters per year with each litter consisting of 4 to 12 piglets.
After about a 115 day gestation period, sows give birth to piglets that weigh from one to two pounds at birth. The little ones have pale stripes running the length of their body until they are six weeks old. After one week of suckling, the piglets are able to follow their mother around. The young grow rapidly and are weaned in about three months. The offspring disperse after a year with their mother and are usually sexually mature by a year and a half. The young reach adult stature within three years and are fully-grown in five to six years.
Why are we not pleased about having them in the park? Feral pigs have the unfortunate habit of trampling down and rooting up large areas of vegetation. The area they feed in looks like the place as been roto-tilled. They dig up acorns, bulbs, mushrooms, insects, etc. They also scratch and dig in wet ground to form wallows. Feral pigs make these wallows to escape heat and insects. They use these wallows mostly in the hot, insect-infested summer months. In short, they completely change the topography of the land.
We are working with the Cleveland National Forest and Fish and Game to come up with our game plan on removing pigs from the park. We are also working with other state parks to find out what they have done, as pigs have been in Northern parks for some years now. We will keep you all updated on this new problem in the park. In the mean time, please be cautious out there.