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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 5, 2009)
‘They’ll eat just about anything they can get; they’re not too picky.’ KNOWN FERAL SWINE LOCATIONS IN OREGON Columbia Clatsop Umatilla Tillamook Multnomah Washington — Rick Boatner, ODFW Invasive Species & Wildlife Integrity Coordinator But according to Roger Huffman of the Oregon Department of Agriculture, Oregon has had some success with feral pig eradication attempts. One eradication near Post in Eastern Oregon involved the use of hunters, live traps and aerial hunting. Data in Oregon’s Feral Swine Action plan says that most of the pigs were killed by hunters on private land. According to Huffman, Sytsma and Boatner, the fact that so many of Oregon’s feral pigs are on private land is a big part of the problem. Feral pig populations have been found in north central Oregon near John Day and Madras and across southwest Oregon from Coos County on the coast to inland Klamath County. They have been found in Harney County and on Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. One sounder of pigs was supposedly spotted just over 100 miles from Eugene: In 1997 the ODFW says there was a an “unsubstantiated but highly credible report of feral swine moving through the KOA Campground at Lincoln City.” Most of the swine that have been spotted were found on private land. Given the nature of the pigs — an aggressive, land destroying, livestock-killing, disease-carrying invasive species — one might assume that landowners would welcome whole-hog eradication. Not so, says Boatner of the ODFW. He says some landowners make money allowing hunters to stalk the elusive swine on their property. According to the website for Clover Creek Ranch, located near Madras, one of the areas ODFW lists as having a feral pig population, it will run you $800 to trophy hunt a 400 to 800 pound feral hog on the 2,200 acre ranch (and you’d better hope you shoot that hog at dawn because there’s an extra $100 fee for skinning after dark). The ranch also offers watusi, yaks, “meat hogs” and a variety of sheep and goats at varying prices for you to shoot, stuff and hang on a wall. Selling feral pig hunts “can be quite lucrative” says Boatner, making it diffi cult for state agencies to persuade hunters of the need to eradicate the hogs. ODFW and ODA aren’t even sure how many feral swine are on private property. “They’re really a tight-lipped community, and they’re not letting people in,” says Boatner. Pig hunters are even suspected of turning wild boars loose to add the feral pig population. Clover Creek Ranch did not return EW’s calls before press time. Hood River Wallowa Morrow Union Gilliam Sherman an n Clackamas Yamhill Wasco o Polk Marion Baker Wheeler Lincoln Jefferson rs son Grant Linn Benton Be Crook Lane Deschutes Douglas Coos Hamey amey mey Malheur Historic Locations/ Now Eradicated Klamath K la Curry Josephine Lake Recent Reports Jackson According to a 2007 pest risk assessment for feral pigs in Oregon, while pig hunts can bring thousands of dollars into a state’s economy, the agricultural impacts alone would cost the state far more. The U.S. spends less than $1 million a year on controlling feral pigs but loses 800 times that in pig damages. Despite the thousands that the pig problem could cost Oregonians, the Feral Swine Action Plan hasn’t really been getting any action, says Sytsma. The plan calls for legislation to control the source of the swine, population assessment, eradication and monitoring to prevent the pigs from returning, but all these things cost money, and funding is in short supply. The one thing that has happened is House Bill 2221, which was recently introduced to Oregon’s Legislature by Gov. Ted Kulongoski on behalf of ODFW. The bill would make the sale or purchase of feral swine hunts illegal, with both fi nes and the loss of hunting licenses as punishment. It would also make it illegal for landowners to “knowingly” let feral swine roam their lands. So what to do if you have a pig problem on your property or see a set of hog tusks fl ash by while you’re out on a hike? Call (800) INVADERS, the Invasive Species Hotline. ODA’s Huffman says hunters could still hunt the pigs under HB 2221; they just can’t pay to hunt. The bill, he says, “takes away the incentive to harbor” a hog. He says, “There’s lots of hunters on our lists willing and able to help at a moment’s notice” and turn Oregon’s potential pig predicament into spare ribs in the sky. ew Pigs aren’t Oregon’s only invasive species. Go to www.oregon.gov/OISC/most_ dangerous.shtml for the top 100 invaders from mute swans to the “unnamed estuarine snail in Coos Bay.” ‘A successful invasion of feral swine is difficult, and sometimes impossible, to reverse.’ — Feral Swine Action Plan REPAIR SALE Sale ends February 28th Bring in your Birkenstock footwear during the month of February and SAVE 10% on repairs* * Sale li m i te d to c lass ic Bir k en s tock , B i r k i ’s, Pap i lli o and s elec ted Tatam i a nd Footp r i nts. L i f ts an d m odification s e xc lud e d. Footwise-Corvallis Repair Sale starts March 1st SANDALS SHOES CLOGS BOOTS WWW.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM • BLOGS.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM &#SPBEXBZt%PXOUPXO&VHFOF t.PO4BU4VO XXXGPPUXJTFDPN EUGENE WEEKLY FEBRUARY 5, 2009 13
