A campaign to raise awareness about wild boars is helping in Alberta's efforts to control the population, said Hannah McKenzie, a wild boar specialist with Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation. A program that helps Albertans identify signs of wild pigs is helping get rid of some of the destructive animals in the province.
Three years ago, the Alberta Invasive Species Council called on Albertans to Squeal on Pigs. It's a campaign that encourages people to report sightings of feral pigs. Megan Evans is executive director of the Alberta Invasive Species Council.The province doesn't have an exact count of how many feral pigs are in Alberta today.
McKenzie said land owners working with trappers are seeing evidence that population control efforts are working. Students at the University of Calgary deployed networks of trail cameras last summer to try and get population estimates, which they will be checking this summer, McKenzie said.Two other government programs, launched in 2022 to reduce the population of wild boars, weren't successful, McKenzie said.
Feral pigs are smart, elusive and nocturnal, which makes sightings rare, according to Evans. That's why the Squeal on Pigs campaign is focused on teaching people how to identify their tracks and signs of damage caused by wild pigs.Once identified, the information is given to trappers who use a corral trap, a circular enclosure with funnel-shaped entrance that makes it easy for hogs to enter but difficult to leave.