Invasive Species We Study: Feral Pigs
Feral pigs are invasive animals first introduced in the continental United States during the 1500s by European sailors. The animals are a problem across the Southeastern and the Western United States. Large numbers exist on Federal lands, including National Wildlife Refuges and National Parks, as a result of illegal releases and high reproductive rates. With adequate nutrition, breeding occurs throughout the year. Females often breed at less than a year old and can produce two litters in a year with an average of four to eight piglets per litter. Large predators of swine, such as wolves and mountain lions, have been extirpated from most of the area where feral swine range, leaving few natural controls. Feral swine are known to spread more than 30 diseases and 37 parasites, including swine brucellosis and pseudorabies, which can have devastating effects on livestock and wildlife.
Feral Pig Research
Building Resilience to Invasive Species in Ohia Forests
Feral Pig Abundance at Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge
Invasive Mammals of the Pacific
Explore our science using the publications below.
A multi-state occupancy modelling framework for robust estimation of disease prevalence in multi-tissue disease systems
Validation of a screening method for the detection of colistin-resistant E. coli containing mcr-1 in feral swine feces
Relationships between soil macroinvertebrates and nonnative feral pigs (Sus scrofa) in Hawaiian tropical montane wet forests
Biology and impacts of Pacific Islands invasive species. 14. Sus scrofa the feral pig (Artiodactyla: Suidae)
Cross-species transmission potential between wild pigs, livestock, poultry, wildlife, and humans: Implications for disease risk management in North America
Federal collaboration in science for invasive mammal management in U.S. National Parks and Wildlife Refuges of the Pacific Islands
Contact heterogeneities in feral swine: implications for disease management and future research
Abundance, distribution, and removals of feral pigs at Big Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex 2010–2015
Evaluating detection and monitoring tools for incipient and relictual non-native ungulate populations
A Tour de Force by Hawaii's invasive mammals: establishment, takeover, ecosystem restoration through eradication
Vegetation and non-native ungulate monitoring at the Big Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex 2010–2014.
How much land is needed for feral pig hunting in Hawai'i?
Feral pigs are invasive animals first introduced in the continental United States during the 1500s by European sailors. The animals are a problem across the Southeastern and the Western United States. Large numbers exist on Federal lands, including National Wildlife Refuges and National Parks, as a result of illegal releases and high reproductive rates. With adequate nutrition, breeding occurs throughout the year. Females often breed at less than a year old and can produce two litters in a year with an average of four to eight piglets per litter. Large predators of swine, such as wolves and mountain lions, have been extirpated from most of the area where feral swine range, leaving few natural controls. Feral swine are known to spread more than 30 diseases and 37 parasites, including swine brucellosis and pseudorabies, which can have devastating effects on livestock and wildlife.
Feral Pig Research
Building Resilience to Invasive Species in Ohia Forests
Feral Pig Abundance at Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge
Invasive Mammals of the Pacific
Explore our science using the publications below.