Texas national parks are rolling out a new strategy to combat one of the state's most destructive invasive species: feral hogs.
The National Park Service is piloting a management framework developed by Texas A&M researchers to help park staff monitor, control, and reduce hog populations.
A longstanding problem in the region, the creatures threaten ecosystems and cause expensive damage across the state, according to researchers.
Feral hogs have spread into most parts of Texas, but they have also been expanding their range across the United States since they were first introduced by settlers in the 1500s.
An estimated 2.6 million live in Texas and cause more than $2.5 billion in annual damages in the U.S., according to the Department of Agriculture. They now present a concerning situation in national parks across Texas and the country.
The hogs' rooting behaviors tear up native vegetation and soil, harm wildlife, and damage ecosystems. They also reproduce quickly and have few natural predators.
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That's part of what prompted Texas A&M researchers to survey more than 400 parks and design a science-backed framework to guide monitoring and management, all tailored to each park's laws, environment, and resources.
"All monitoring and management plans, if they are available, had to be created by the staff of the individual parks," said John Tomeček, associate professor and project adviser at Texas A&M in the Department of Rangeland, Wildlife, and Fisheries Management.
"This presents a distinct challenge based on a park's available resources, expertise, and even environmental attributes."
The framework will be pilot-tested in parks across Texas, Tennessee, and Hawai'i.
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Do you think America does a good job of protecting its natural beauty? Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. |
Definitely 👍 Beyond massive property damages, invasive species like feral hogs can injure and transmit disease to humans and livestock, threaten endangered species, wipe out crops and native plants, and destroy ecosystems that local wildlife rely on.
Wild animals like hogs disrupting developed spaces is not new. More and more animals are entering urban areas and interacting with humans as a result of habitat loss.
Commenters online have grown tired of the invasive hogs disrupting local communities.
"Feral swine are the worst," one Reddit user said. "We should mitigate the risks, but not at the expense of biodiversity and existing native species."
"Ya know for how weird some of their traditions are, Aggies really do help local wildlife," another user added.
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