GPS Tracking Being Used on Destructive Digging Feral Pigs

14 May 2015

Feral pigs are getting their comeuppance with the use of high-tech GPS tracking and thermal imagery equipment. The pigs range over the southwest part of Australia, rooting up the land.

The pigs cause major problems for the diverse ecosystem in this part of the continent by digging up soil in order to find food like tubers, rhizomes, roots and fungal fruiting bodies, like mushrooms, and small animals. A recent study showed that the pigs disturbed almost 13 tons of soil in one forest over the course of a year.

The feral pigs, just like their domestic cousins, will eat just about anything. This includes dead meat and live prey like reptiles, turtle eggs, small mammals, and bird chicks that nest in the ground.

Tracking the Wild Pig

The feral pigs were fitted with GPS tracking collars and set loose. Aerial surveillance tracked their locations with the help of both GPS and thermal sensors. The sensors work because the pigs have large bodies and very little hair, making them hotter than other species like kangaroos and wallabies.

Pigs are hard to track and it is hoped the devices will give more detailed data than was previously possible. Scientists want to know where they are and how many are in pack. The more information they have, the more effective the management plan they can put together.

The goal is to increase the size of the study in order to monitor the populations and map their distribution and density.

More Pigs Than Humans

Australia has over 23 million feral pigs, according to estimates reported in The Telegraph. The entire continent has only 21 million humans, making it a hog heaven for these destructive animals.

They are descended from the domestic pigs released into the country centuries ago by explorers like Captain Cook. Their idea was to provide a self-replenishing supply of meat for future expeditions in the area.

The pig population keeps growing because farmers, wildlife experts and government officials can’t agree on a common method of dealing with them.

Amateur hunters practicing the sport of pig hunting help to keep the population down to a degree. The pig meat can’t be eaten by humans because of worm infestation and disease.

The feral sows produce two litters of piglets a year, each with 10 babies. Each of those are able to breed within six months.


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