2011 Map
1982 map
As you can see, feral hogs have expanded their range in the last couple of decades. The Texas Parks & Wildlife department had their population at 1 million, then 2 million, and now some sources estimate that there are up to 2.6 to 3.9 million in the state. A wild sow can have up to 20 babies at a time. They can do this a couple of times a year!
We got cable TV for the first time and the technician who installed it had a degree in wildlife management. We got to talking about feral pigs. He said they chase off deer and other wildlfe and consume vast amounts of acorns and other forest foods. These feral hogs are not native to Texas, but were brought here by the Spanish explorers. Domestic pigs have added to the gene pool over the last hundred years and many are much larger than the wild boars of Eurasia.
The latest craze are reality shows about hunting feral hogs.
For a person in a city like Houston, all of this seems like a far away problem.
However, just 20 miles away, feral pigs live in Addicks reservoir and I'm told by my students that they tear up the local golf courses at night!
I'm afraid to ask if anyone sees wild hogs in their area, but I'd like to know.
David/ :-)
