For decades, wild pigs have been antagonizing flora and fauna in the US: gobbling up crops, spreading disease, and even killing deer and elk.

Now, as fears over the potential of the pig impact in the US grow, North America is also facing a new swine-related threat, as a Canadian "super pig", a giant, "incredibly intelligent, highly elusive" beast capable of surviving cold climates by tunneling under snow, is poised to infiltrate the north of the country.



The emergence of the so-called super pig, a result of cross-breeding domestic pigs with wild boars, only adds to the problems the US faces from the swine invasion.

Pigs are not native to the US, but have wrought havoc in recent decades: the government estimates the country's approximately 6m wild, or feral, pigs cause $1.5bn of damage each year.

In parts of the country, the pigs' prevalence has sparked a whole hog hunting industry, where people pay thousands of dollars to mow down boar and sow with machine guns. But overall, the impact of the pigs, first introduced to the US in the 16th century, has very much been a negative, as the undiscerning swine has chomped its way across the country.

"We see direct competition for our native species for food," said Michael Marlow, assistant program manager for the Department of Agriculture's National feral swine damage management program.

In Canada, like in the US, wild pigs are a relatively recent problem. Up until 2002 there were barely any wild pigs in the country, but Brook said the population has exploded in the past eight years. The animals are now spread across 1 million sq km of Canada, predominantly in Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

"Wild pigs are easily the worst invasive large mammal on the planet," said Ryan Brook.

"They're incredibly intelligent. They're highly elusive, and also when there's any pressure on them, especially if people start hunting them, they become almost completely nocturnal, and they become very elusive   hiding in heavy forest cover, and they disappear into wetlands and they can be very hard to locate."

Brook and others are particularly troubled by the emergence of a "super pig", created by farmers cross-breeding wild boar and domestic pigs in the 1980s. The result was a larger swine, which produced more meat, and was easier for people to shoot in Canadian hunting reserves.

These pigs escaped captivity and swiftly spread across Canada, with the super pig proving to be an incredibly proficient breeder, Brook said, while its giant size   one pig has been clocked at more than 300kg (661lbs)   makes it able to survive the frigid western Canada winters, where the wind chill can be -50C.

"All the experts said at that time: 'Well, no worries. If a wild pig or a wild boar ever escaped from a farm, there's no way it would survive a western Canadian winter. It would just freeze to death.'

"Well, it turns out that being big is a huge advantage to surviving in the cold."

The pigs survive extreme weather by tunneling up to 2m under snow, Brook said, creating a snow cave.

"They'll use their razor-sharp tusks to cut down cattails [a native plant], and line the bottom of the cave with cattails as a nice warm insulating layer.

"And in fact, they're so warm inside that one of the ways we use to find these pigs is to fly first thing in the morning when it's really cold, colder than -30, and you will actually see steam just pouring out the top of the snow."

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/feb/20/us-threat-canada-super-pig-boar

In before someone complains they’ll have to pay to hunt them.

Sounds like someone is laying the ground work to eliminate domestic pork production.

You know, to "solve the super pig problem".

Bring 'em on... I'm ready.

This is a stealth thread about Pelosi and South Park, right?  I’m in.

Attached File

More importantly, what round for Super Pigs? I'm thinking something unnecessarily big .30 cal or .40 cal rifles?

So.... helicopter hunting with LaRue Predatars on frigid mornings? Just look for steam and blast away!

Challenge Accepted!

If it works for a grizzly bear it would probably work for a super pig.

All of that food running around...

Finally, REAL Canadian bacon!

Very intelligent but have a weakness for crappy beer and are very polite...

Wonder how long until "Snow pigs" start showing up down here.

First page .

Hunting under NODS Great White North edition.

I don't see what the Mounties have to do with this.

I don't want them but I have to confess that I have always wanted to shoot and butcher one.....  Its against the law to shoot them here because the game and fish cops  don't want ypu to scatter the sounder.....

when will they get into NH and Maine so I can hunt them.

They're an excellent source of protein; far superior to chickens.

They said the fuckers can get over 600 lbs. I am thinking 45-70

I genuinely lol'd

The Wooly Mammoth of the pig world.

"These pigs are a HUGE problem!  Come pay top dollar to try to take a shot at one."

Maybe this is why fluffy is assembling large caliber garands?

Where do you live?

You don’t want em.

free super pig tags in northern MN when?

but I do

less work, more meat and more fun that deer hunting.

Anyone know if a wolf will take them on?

New sport hunting from helicopter and by land. Americans are good about killing hogs in large numbers, some people are upset but who cares.

Boarnado 1,2,3, and 4 coming to a theatre near you!

45/70

NH F&G needs to reclassify the wild pigs already in NH.

They are currently considered escaped private property and not a game animal.

IMO, enough of them have escaped from Corbin Park that they're living wild in small numbers.

Sounds like a movie idea for the bad movie…I mean SciFy channel

Would love to hunt some super pigs here in the Rockies.

A friend of mine is itching to go hunt them in Northern California.  I made a custom scope mount for a cherry Mosin-Nagant that he's setting up for pig hunting.

There will be meat.  I'm looking forward to that.

I don’t see why they wouldn’t. Boars can be mean but a few wolves wouldn’t have a problem (I think).

Electric snowmobile technical it is then.

Didn't a member here build a 9.3x62 Garand?  Seems perfect for this application...

Super pig sounds tasty

I'm in.

That is outstanding but you have to deal with them in short order or they will burrow under that and be gone.  Maybe some pointy objects facing in so they run face first into something like a spear.

"They're tearing my land up! They're destroying my crops! We've already lost thousands of dollars this year because of them, please help !  "


"Hey, I'll come hunt them if you want ???  "


"Sure . Pay me a 500.00 per hunter, come kill all you want"

If any one did, @FluffyTheCat will know.  And it will have dog hair on it. Plus he will be able to give an objective opinion about the current Canadian dictatorship government.

Seems to me like an opportunity to help with a food shortage ?????

From article:



If this is true, have there been sightings in northern US states like Montana, North Dakota, and Minnesota? I've been hearing this doom and gloom for years about feral swine in MI but never seen one, and no one I hunt with has seen one. Even ran trail cams in southern Ohio for a few years, never any swine just deer.

Ryan Brook is just looking for a payday.

Creek and timber across the road from my house is full of pigs.  Walked over a couple weeks ago and the place was alive with snorting and squealing, shot 4 and left cause it was getting dark and some jackass forgot the bring a flashlight

My 45-70 is ready to help solve the problem. I just hope the wolves, mountain lions, and grizzlies leave a few for us to shoot.

Most likely though, MT FWP will fuck everything up for everyone so it’s too difficult to do with ridiculous tag fees, draws, regulations and seasons. They will have to do a multi year 100 million dollar environmental impact study first though.

I keep reading about pigpocolypse but I have never even seen one and I am all over the place. I don’t think it’s time to jump to panic mode yet.