Canada’s wild hogs are apparently poised to invade America’s yard. In new research this month, scientists have found evidence that these invasive wild pigs have a “high potential” to cross over the Canadian border and establish new populations in mostly pig-free parts of the U.S., particularly South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, and Minnesota.
Despite once being mere fodder for a meme, the threat of feral and wild pigs has become larger over time. These animals have no natural predators in the areas where they’ve invaded, allowing them to quickly grow in numbers and voraciously consume a region’s native vegetation and small wildlife or farmed crops. They can also carry a variety of potentially dangerous germs and have been known to attack pets or even humans on occasion.
Feral swine have invaded much of the southern half of the U.S., and are typically a combination of escaped domestic pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus) and Eurasian wild boars (Sus scrofa). But Canada’s pig problem is uniquely terrifying. Hunters deliberately brought over wild boars to the area as livestock and controlled game during the 1980s and 1990s, but some were able to escape or were released and then mated with domestic pigs. The net result is that Canada’s wild pigs today tend to be larger and more resistant to cold than those down south, with scientists often referring to them as “super” pigs. Their size and hardiness likely also means that these pigs can easily expand their range further across North America.
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