Wildlife Spotlight: Feral Hog
feral hogs |
Feral hogs are not Florida natives. The first hogs to go wild in
Florida may have escaped from Hernando de Soto’s expedition through
Florida (1539 to 1540). Today, Florida has more feral hogs than any other
state except Texas.
Also known as feral pigs, wild boars, and piney-woods rooters, feral
hogs are found throughout Florida in a variety of habitats, although
they prefer moist forests and swamps and pine flatwoods. Feral hogs feed
by rooting with their broad snouts and can cause great damage to soils,
vegetation, and native wildlife. Most of the feral hog’s diet is
vegetation; however, they are opportunistic and also eat snakes, grubs,
and even carrion. Hogs have a huge reproductive potential. Females give
birth to numerous litters every year, with 5 to 10 babies per litter.
With such high reproductive and destructive abilities, feral hogs are
hunted to keep their numbers—and the destruction they cause—in check. At
Salt Lake WMA during the first hunting season (2004-2005), 19 hogs were
harvested. The largest hog was a 210-pound male.
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