iowa and hogs

[drew]

hey i maybe leaving the great state of kalifornia for iowa. i know the whitetail and pheasant hunting is some of the greatest in the country but i haven't heard anything about the hogs i was wondering if i am going to have to trade the bay and catchdogs in for bird dogs.

thanks in advance
drew

 

[Lurediver]

I've hunted Iowa a bunch and have never heard of any populations of wild piggies running around! I'm sure there's a few that escape the farm or slaughter house but not enough to have a hunting season like California!


Someone posted this article awhile back, view post below, maybe I was wrong!

 

[Lurediver]

"At this point, we don't how many wild hogs are actually out there, but we are taking the threat very seriously. We've launched a full scale assault on these animals, and our goal is to completely eradicate the population."
DNR Wildlife Management Biologist, Carl Priebe.

FREE ROAMING HOGS IMPACTING SOUTHWEST IOWA LANDSCAPE
By Lowell Washburn
Iowa Department of Natural Resources

RIVERTON--There's trouble brewing, and the stage is set for ecological disaster. Exotic Russian hogs have invaded southwest Iowa's Riverton Wildlife Unit.

Commonly referred to as wild boars, Russian hogs are large, black bristled, hump-backed animals that, for most of us, are best equated with movies featuring mid-evil hunts and extravagant feasts in royal dining halls. A native of northern European forests, Russian hogs may attain weights reaching several hundred pounds. Some of the animals have been brought to America and released on pay to hunt shooting preserves. Escapees have established wild populations. In 2004, a Russian boar weighing 1,000 pounds and sporting 9-inch tusks was shot in Georgia. Officially named Hogzilla, the boar is thought to be a New World record. In Iowa, the Riverton hogs are believed to have escaped from a nearby shooting preserve located in Fremont County.

Although new to Iowa, free roaming hogs have been an ongoing problem in several southern states. Universally despised, wild hogs are most noted for their incessant rooting and voracious appetites. Often referred to as Nature's bulldozer, wild hogs are nothing short of a natural disaster on hooves. When it come to wreaking havoc on natural ecosystems, nothing does it better. In The South, some wildlife biologists will even go so far at to rank free roaming hogs in the same category as fire ants, floods and hurricanes.

"In Iowa, we have already received a preview of just how destructive these animals can be, and I think it's safe to say that they've gotten our full attention," said DNR Wildlife Management Biologist, Carl Priebe.

A notable example of that destruction occurred last summer when a group of 12 free roaming hogs invaded a 27-acre corn field. Ravaging the plot like a living whirlwind, the pigs knocked down stocks and destroyed ears throughout the field. When the damage was assessed, it was discovered that the 12 pigs had destroyed a full 65 percent of the crop.

"We've also seen some severe damage to timbered areas," said Priebe. "At one location, we discovered a full acre and a half of completely bare ground. In that case, it literally looked as if someone had taken a plow through that section of the woods."

In addition to opening fragile woodland soils to erosion and destroying native plant life, foraging hogs also compete with desirable species such as squirrels, wild turkeys, and deer for natural food sources such as acorns and other mast crops.

"Whatever these animals come across they'll eat," said Priebe. "If they find acorns, they'll eat those. If they come across a turkey nest, they'll eat the eggs. They'll even eat a fawn."

Unfortunately, it appears as if a wild hog's capacity for destruction is only rivaled by its ability to reproduce. Adult sows routinely pump out two litters of 4 to 8 piglets per year. Within six months, those youngsters are sexually mature and ready to begin producing young of their own. A study conducted in the southern U.S. found that, even with natural mortality, a herd of just 10 free roaming hogs could build to a population of 2,500 animals within five years.

In Iowa, as elsewhere, wild hogs enjoy no legal protection. There are no bag limits, no closed season, no restriction on weapons. Unfortunately, there are also no case studies of where hunting has been a viable means of hog control.

"Although I've talked to biologists in other states, I haven't been able to find a single case of where hunting has had an effect on populations," said Priebe. "There is some interest [in hunting] and, so far, hunters have killed 13 pigs here. But it seems that for every one or two hogs actually shot, another 9 or 10 become educated.

"These hogs are truly wild and are very sensitive to human presence. After just two days of hunting pressure, the pigs at Riverton had already moved a mile and a half and became completely nocturnal. I think it's obvious that hunting alone won't control them."

Catching wild hogs in baited live traps may provide greater potential. Earlier this spring, the DNR attempted to lure pigs into a 15-foot-diameter circular walk-in trap baited with corn. The trap was patterned after those currently being used by the U.S. Department of Agriculture animal damage control agents in Missouri.

"We set the trap in March, and immediately caught 20 hogs -- two mature sows accompanied by 18 young pigs. I thought, No Sweat, we can catch these things," said Priebe. "That initial catch was misleading, and it's all been uphill since then.

"One of our major problems is that wild hogs are completely unpredictable. At Forney Lake, we baited a site with corn. When we came back the next day, the hogs had cleaned up every kernel. We rebaited, and planned for success. Two days went by and the pigs never showed. On the third night they returned, completely rooted up a substantial area next to the bait, and never touched a single kernel of corn. That's when I began to realize how challenging this project was going to be.

"The big difference between Iowa and other states is that we're still dealing with a very limited number of hogs. So far, a total of 21 pigs have been trapped, 13 have been shot, and there are two confirmed road kills. I think there are probably less than 50 animals still at large. There is still a chance that we'll win this thing."


###


HUNTING WILD PIGS MAY DO MORE HARM THAN GOOD

Carl Priebe used to spend his days overseeing the 20 Wildlife Management Areas in southwest Iowa. That meant making sure the waterfowl, upland game and forest animals had the food and shelter they needed on the roughly 10,000 acres those areas spanned. It meant working with private landowners who wanted the same for the animals on their own property. It meant maintaining the numerous public use facilities so frequently used by hunters and anglers alike.

Now the Iowa DNR wildlife management biologist spends his time studying, tracking, monitoring and trying to eradicate an animal few ever thought would pose a problem in Iowa – wild Russian hogs.

“We spent most of March doing nothing but pigs…,” Priebe said, referring to himself and his staff of three, “building traps, checking traps, baiting sites and looking for new bait sites.”

And answering phone calls. Lots of them. Since wild pigs are not protected in Iowa, many of the calls came from hunters looking for an opportunity to pursue an animal that previously was only an option on pay-to-hunt game farms. And that is causing some consternation to the staff whose goal is to eradicate an animal that is already wreaking havoc on one wildlife area, and is poised to do the same on others if left unchecked.

Here's an article someone posted awhile back, maybe I was wrong!


“In other states, hunting has not proven to be successful in stemming population growth,” Priebe said. “That’s why we’re resorting to trapping.”

In fact, hunting may even be counterproductive.

“If 10 pigs walk out into a field and a hunter shoots one, he’s killed one pig but educated nine,” he said. “And it appears that hunting pressure tends to turn them nocturnal, and they will move readily if pressured.”

Even more disconcerting for Priebe is the safety issue. He’s concerned turkey hunters will see the pigs as an opportunity to add to their game bag and will be woefully under-matched in the field, given the fact turkey hunters can’t have anything larger than No. 2 nontoxic or No. 4 lead shot in their possession when hunting. He’s also concerned that a turkey hunter dressed in full dark camouflage could be mistaken for a Russian hog, which is typically solid black in color.

“I am a little nervous with turkey season, having turkey hunters (and mushroom hunters) out there mixing with someone who has a high-power (rifle) shooting pigs,” Priebe said. “We’d prefer to handle the situation through trapping, but if nothing else, we’d at least like to see the pig hunters hold off until after the turkey and mushroom seasons.”

 

[bayedsolid]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div>

i was wondering if i am going to have to trade the bay and catchdogs in for bird dogs.[/b]

Oh the shame of it all.

 

[drew]

well it looks like i will be doing three day trips to arkansas and oaklahoma. trade the dogs for bird dogs yeah right.

drew

 

[spectr17]

There's been some reports of hogs in the SE corner near the MO state line. I stomp that ground during spring turkey and deer season and haven't seen any sign yet. It may be the folks from AR letting loose razorbacks again like in MO where we now have huntable hog numbers in several counties.

I'll ask my cousins who live near Muscatine what they're hearing next time I talk to them.