A traffic jam on I-45 near Dallas turned out to be more than just a bizarre highway story.
According to CBS News, multiple feral hogs died after being struck near Belt Line Road, underscoring how invasive pigs are pushing deeper into North Texas neighborhoods and onto busy roadways.
According to TxDOT, southbound traffic on I-45 came to a halt early one weekday after several feral hogs were hit. Cleanup crews were called in, turning an already dangerous wildlife encounter into a major commuter backup.
The crash came days after CBS News Texas reported on Mesquite residents dealing with roaming hogs that have caused damage and disrupted neighborhoods. Residents were told to report sightings, but Mesquite's animal services division could not capture or take away the animals.
Data from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department shows feral pigs occupied almost all Texas counties in 2019, with El Paso County the only exception.
The scale of the population boom has been staggering. According to TPWD, the U.S. wild pig population rose from 2.4 million in 1982 to almost 7 million by 2016, with roughly 2.6 million of those animals in Texas alone.
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Wild pigs are an invasive species that were brought to the Americas centuries ago and later allowed to spread through free-range farming. Today, they root through land, consume plants and animals, muddy water sources, and spread disease, disrupting ecosystems and agriculture alike.
TPWD research estimated over $1.5 billion in nationwide damages and control costs in 2007, and said that figure would be about $2.1 billion a year by 2020 if costs held steady.
There is also a direct risk to people. As hogs move into suburbs and roadways, they can trigger crashes, damage property, and strain local services that are often not equipped to respond.
Authorities said a caretaker in Anahuac died in 2019 after an attack by a group of feral hogs. For families in North Texas, that makes the latest highway incident feel less like an oddity and more like a warning.
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TPWD has warned that wild pigs are "one of the top 100 worst exotic invasive species in the world," and that natural predation "plays a minor role in wild pig mortality," meaning this growing North Texas problem is unlikely to solve itself.
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