The super pig population in Canada has blown up to unmanageable levels and threatens to expand into the United States.

What is a super pig? “Super Pigs” are hybrids of huge domestic hogs and the best specimens of the wild boar. 

The genetic combination of the best of both worlds makes these species survive better than typical pigs.

While the ancestors of the wild Eurasian boar have been in the Canadian prairies for hundreds of years, it was not until 1980 that they became domesticated. In 2001, the lucrative market for wild boar collapsed and farmers either sold off or released the animals. 

A Crop Threat

Now the numbers of these hybrids has increased to an astonishing degree and they have become an ecological danger. By November 20, 2023, around 65,000 wild pigs had undergone aerial survey within Canada.

They consume not only farm crops but other forest fauna as well. In the United States, the super pigs are responsible for $2.5 billion worth of crop damage each year. 

Provinces absorb Super Pigs

The Canadian provinces of Manitoba, Alberta and Saskatchewan are witnessing hordes of these wild pigs. 

As their population in Canada balloons up, sightings of the pigs close to the American border are also becoming a common thing. People have even traced them 28 kilometers near the Minnesota-Manitoba border. 

Though records of sightings abound, no one knows exactly how many there are countrywide, only that they are increasing fast. Their reproduction cycle is pretty fast for a  a sow can bear half a dozen piglets at a time.

Ontario in Crossfire

Troops of the always-hungry super pigs are also on the move towards Ontario,. The province regards wild pigs an invasive species for they descended from Eurasia (Europe) rather than continental America. 

Though  Ontario has not documented a real establishment of the super pig population, the authorities still records their movements. They seem to move in their hundreds within the Province. 

Tracking the Animals in the U.S. a Challenge

After super pigs have expanding horizons into the U.S., the country has intensified its eradication drive. 

However, some states have since given up and banned hunting partly owing to the pigs’ survival sense. The wild boars have developed a survival instinct to avoid poachers and have become extremely wary in the dark.

While analysts expect slaughter of 65% of the wild boars annually in the U.S., they admit low results. Indeed, hunters only manage to kill only 2 to 3% of their super-wary targets.