Interested to read that the Wild Boar – extinct in England since the 17th Century – is making something of a comeback. Re-introduced into the wild following the hurricane of 1987 when many farmed animals escaped, they now number some between 500 and 1,000. After the recent release of animals in Devon, most boar slipped quietly away onto the moors and into the woodlands, their natural habitat.
Now concern is growing that they will become, like foxes, urban vermin, foraging for food in our back gardens and rooting through our bins.
And good foragers they are too. We experienced them in Hong Kong where wild board and abandoned domestic pigs have come together to create a surprisingly large population around Sai Kung and the Country Park. They would come down the valley into our garden – before we ‘reclaimed it’ – towards the end of the year when water was scarce. I would often see them through the railing when I parked my car but, at the first sign of movement towards them they would be off like a shot.
As we cleared the land and planted vegetables they visited more often – eating all my radishes and generally making a right mess. Good quality 6ft fencing was the answer….
Now their number is growing in England it means they may be shot….. Roll on the Wiltshire boar population! I must check if Mr FM is adequately tooled up for such an event.
