‘Biggest wild hog problem’ in the US? California is in the top 10 for feral pigs
California has one of the largest wild hog problems in the U.S., according to a new study.
The state ranked No. 10 on a list of the top 15 states “most impacted by wild hogs,”according to Captain Experiences, a U.S. fishing and hunting guide. Reports of wild hogs have been made across all of California’s 58 counties as of 2023.
Texas took the top spot.
The “destructive” invasive species — Sus scrofa — will eat just about anything and has no “major” predators. The big, fast, aggressive, adaptable and fertile creatures have been multiplying across the country over the last several years, the study states.
The mammal, native to Eurasia and northern Africa, goes by many names: Wild hog, wild boar, feral swine and razorback.
In California, wild pigs were unclassified and could be killed without restrictions until the 50s, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
By the 90s, people were required to have wild pig license tags while on the hunt. Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill to once again loosen restrictions, allowing hunters to kill an unlimited number of wild hogs with proper permitting.
According to a 2022 story from The Sacramento Bee, hunters report killing fewer than 5,000 wild pigs in California each year, “a fraction of the state’s feral hog population, estimated at between 200,000 and 400,000 animals.”
California has the fourth largest wild hog population, behind Texas, Florida and Georgia, The Bee reported.
Spanish and Russian settlers brought domestic pigs to California in the 1700s, the department wrote. Many of those turned wild. Then, a Monterey County resident introduced the European wild boar, which subsequently bred with the earlier hogs.
“The result of these introductions is a wild boar/feral domestic pig hybrid,” the website states.
U.S. states with the ‘biggest wild hog problem’
Captain Experiences’ ranking is based on data from the University of George Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health, which tracks sightings across the United States. The number of reports does not reflect the total population.
Several U.S. states, including Alaska, Idaho and Maryland, don’t have feral hog reports.
The following states have the largest wild hog problem across the country, according to Captain Experiences:
- Texas - 2,425 reports
- Georgia - 1,377 reports
- Florida - 1,193 reports
- Mississippi - 731 reports
- Oklahoma - 665 reports
- Arkansas - 657 reports
- North Carolina - 655 reports
- Louisiana - 613 reports
- Alabama - 590 reports
- California - 563 reports
- Tennessee - 488 reports
- South Carolina - 423 reports
- Missouri - 336 reports
- Kentucky - 310 reports
- Ohio - 102 reports
This story was originally published November 28, 2023 at 5:00 AM with the headline "‘Biggest wild hog problem’ in the US? California is in the top 10 for feral pigs."