They kill people and pets here in the US
The_Caretaker@lemm.ee 1 week ago
Leave the poor piggies alone. I have wild boars near me in Japan and twice in the past year I’ve been close enough to touch them. They are highly intelligent social animals. If you demonstrate that you aren’t a threat, they are indifferent to your presence and if you offer them an apple, potato, corn, bread or peanuts they will warm up to you like a cat when you give it food. The problem isn’t the boars, it’s that people act aggressively toward them and they respond with aggression.
LonstedBrowryBased@lemm.ee 1 week ago
IMongoose@lemmy.world 1 week ago
There have only been like 5 wild boar deaths in the US in the past 200 years: nytimes.com/…/texas-woman-killed-feral-hogs.html
The_Caretaker@lemm.ee 1 week ago
I’m sure they do. I bet domestic dogs kill a lot more people and pets per year though.
barnacul@lemmy.world 1 week ago
Wild boars tear up large swaths of forest floor in search of food. They wipe out native tubers and disrupt the carbon cycle, ultimately degrading the land into scrub.
They are also predators, they can weigh over half a ton, and they are violent when threatened.
pugsnroses77@sh.itjust.works 1 week ago
the problem isnt the boar itself but the damage an outside threat poses to a delicate ecosystem
The_Caretaker@lemm.ee 1 week ago
I think people tend to see what benefits their desires. Domestic dogs kill far more humans and pets per year than boars, yet no one is advocating going out and shooting dogs on sight. We aren’t interested in their meat. Cats are an invasive species in many places where humans have introduced them and cats have hunted many native bird species to extinction, yet no one is saying we should kill all the kitties. Boars are very intelligent, smarter than dogs and wolves. They can smell yams, potatoes and truffles three feet under the ground. They can also smell gun oil, gun powder, and dogs. They know when you’re in the woods to hunt them. Here in Japan, the absence of boars kills forests. Many tubers here are also climbing vines that choke and kill trees. When humans stop living in the forest and there are no boars, the vines take over and the trees die. Humans living in harmony with nature will cut vines away from food producing trees. Boars dig up tubers and sometimes the tree roots get damaged, but if the boar did nothing, the tree would be killed in a few years anyway. I cut vines off of trees when I walk the forests near me. I prioritize saving cherry, plum and walnut trees but I rescue as many trees as I have time for. The boars are a big help.
pugsnroses77@sh.itjust.works 1 week ago
i think controlling domestic pets is also an issue and im a huge advocate for indoor only, but boars will not integrate in forests here the same way they would in japan. im not an advocate for killing nor do i think it would work, but TNR efforts may help the same way it does with stray cat populations
SupraMario@lemmy.world 1 week ago
Yea… please don’t get the two mixed up and spread harmful info online. The wild boars hear are dangerous, if you are out walking in the woods and stumble upon one, they won’t always run. They will try and hurt you and the tusk on these guys are dangerously sharp and can punch through skin like it’s butter.
On top of the danger part. They’re also super destructive to the environment, and we’re not talking just about crop loss either.
jagged_circle@feddit.nl 1 week ago
They won’t try to hurt you if you keep distance. Have respect for wildlife
SupraMario@lemmy.world 1 week ago
Yea…yea they will. You’re comment is the equivalent of telling people in Australia not to worry about spiders. They are dangerous animals here in the USA and will charge you even if you’re keeping your distance.
dubyakay@lemmy.ca 1 week ago
It’s fairly easy to keep them in check though.
ryathal@sh.itjust.works 1 week ago
It’s really not, boars can breed multiple times per year, have litters between 2 and 12, and can breed as early as 6 months old.
It takes lots of effort to keep a population stable, actually eliminating them is very difficult.
dubyakay@lemmy.ca 1 week ago
In Hungary hunters love them. You get money for every boar shot and they make an okay stew.