Just Got Back From Rolla

[oneshot]

 

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Made a trip to Mark Twain National Forest Headquarters in Rolla. Asked them about hunting Hogs on MTNF Lands? I was told MDC pushed them into complying with them as far as Hog Hunting. After September 30 it is illegal to hunt Feral Hogs on any Public Land in the State.

oneshot
 

[fishinwrench]

They are needed to help fertilize the milkweed.

[BilletHead]

No wrench they are afraid old crackshot oneshot will miss and educate them there piggies. That or they don't want us to enjoy ourselves shooting them porkers.

[MOPanfisher]

MDC certainly lobbied to get the other state and federal land management agencies to go along. 

[fishinwrench]

If there's a good reason why MDC would go the extra mile to protect feral hogs I'd love to hear it.  

[BilletHead]

Not protecting the hogs. If the sounder (group) of hogs have been undisturbed they are easyer to trap. Thus eradicating the whole bunch at once. Wild hogs are very smart. 

BilletHead

[Johnsfolly]

It may take days or weeks to get a sounder comfortable enough to trap them all at once. Also once any pig in that group gets skittish they may not get trapped. So the MDC doesn't want any hunters to inadvertently alert the group by trying to harvest a pig out of that group. As BH said, pigs are pretty smart and they may leave the trapping area meaning all the preparation done to trap them is wasted. 

The other big reason the MDC has banned pig hunting is to try to stop people from continuing to release pigs just so they could hunt them later.

Rabbits have nothing on pigs when it comes to having piglets. A sow could have up to three litters a year and possibly five or more piglets at a time. They eat everything, plants, animals, mushrooms (the horror) that they come across and it looks like a tilling job from hell when they have rooted through an area. Hunting will never effectively comtrol a pig population.

[BilletHead]

Yes very destructive. I have had hunted them in Texas five years ina row. Looks like a bomb has gone off. Large patches of barren earth where nothing is growing. They are fun to hunt for sure but I would give that up keeping what we have. 

BilletHead

[Johnsfolly]

In states like Texas, SC, Georgia, and Florida where they are already well established they might as well hunt them and deal with the damage. The belief here is to eradicate them before the population gets established. May already be too late. We'll have to see. 

I have never hunted pigs. It looks like fun. No problem leaving MO to do it.

[fishinwrench]

I saw my first one around here in the early '90's in the North shore area.  Since then I've seen less than a half dozen here and there.  Always just singles all alone.    If none of the others are there to see one fall from a "Boom" then I guess they won't become ultra-intelligent?  Even though "Booms" happen all the time around here with all these SHTF freaks and all the Rednecks with big fireworks. 

I wonder what is keeping their numbers in check around here?