Agricultural News
Oklahoma Department of Agriculture Creates Feral Swine Directory
Mon, 26 Sep 2011 11:24:45 CDT
The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry (ODAFF) is creating the Oklahoma Feral Swine Directory to help hunters and trappers locate landowners who want help in controlling feral swine.
Feral swine can be found in all 77 counties in Oklahoma. The animals are omnivorous and will eat anything from grain to meat. Cultivated crops make up a large part of their diet but they also prey on ground-nesting birds, like quail and turkey. Feral swine will kill and consume lambs and kid goats. Crops commonly damaged by feral swine include wheat, sorghum, soybeans, corn, peanuts, hay, watermelons, pecans and vegetable gardens. The swine don't just eat crops, they also trample them into the ground.
Feral swine were once domestic hogs, but are now wild. They typically travel in groups consisting of sows and young while boars are generally solitary. Feral swine can be aggressive and violent in addition to carrying diseases. It is speculated that feral swine double their population every four months.
"Feral swine have become a serious problem for our agriculture producers in the state" said Secretary of Agriculture Jim Reese. "It is imperative that we do all we can to help control the spread of these animals."
The Oklahoma Feral Swine Directory is intended to be an online tool to help hunters and trappers who are willing to provide feral swine control locate landowners who want their help. An application form for landowners with feral swine problems can be downloaded by clicking here.
Landowners will be grouped by county in the directory. The exact location of their property will not be revealed. They will be in control of accepting or declining offers from hunters and trappers. Hunters and trappers willing to assist landowners can download an application by clicking here. A database of their contact information will allow landowners to extend hunting offers to them.
Completed forms from landowners and hunters/trappers should be mailed to Oklahoma Feral Swine Directory at the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry, 2800 N Lincoln Blvd., Oklahoma City, OK 73105. An interactive map of landowners by county will be on the ODAFF website, which you can visit by clicking here. The map will show names, phone numbers and email addresses of landowners. A list of hunters and trappers with their contact information will also be on the website. Information will remain in the directory for a period of one year.
Hunters, trappers and landowners can use this directory to contact each other and arrive at mutually agreeable terms for hunting or trapping feral swine. ODAFF urges all hunters and trappers to respect private property rights and abide by all state regulations.
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