Operations manager Mike Stevens said the board worked quickly to ensure the pigs did not become established.<\/p>\n
“It’s likely people have gone up there, caught some pigs, presumably brought them back home and released them on purpose to establish a hunting population for themselves,” he said.<\/p>\n
“There’s been some work done that’s confirmed the genetics of the animals being released are from southern NSW.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Three attempts to establish a population in the region have been made in recent years. (Supplied: Limestone Coast Landscape Board)<\/p>\n
Mr Stevens said feral pigs could reproduce rapidly.<\/p>\n
“In optimal conditions a pregnant female can have up to 10 kids [that are] sexually mature within six months [after a] a three- to four-month gestation period.<\/p>\n
“If you do the maths \u2026 basically one pregnant female can result in 200 to 300 kids within two years.<\/p>\n
“Through a combination of trapping, poison baiting, visual aerial shooting and thermal-assisted aerial shooting, we’ve removed close to 90 animals in one location.<\/p>\n
“That was within the space of 12 months.”<\/p>\n
The LCLB was aware of one pig remaining in the region, he said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Feral pigs cause significant damage to agricultural land. (Supplied: Limestone Coast Landscape Board)<\/p>\n
‘Mini bulldozers’<\/p>\n
Invasive Species Council chief executive Jack Gough said feral pigs were “mini bulldozers”.<\/p>\n
“If the farmers of north-west NSW or south-west Queensland could go back in time and not have feral pigs, I’m pretty sure they would spend whatever they could to make sure they don’t,” he said.<\/p>\n
“[That’s] because of the scale of destruction that they cause in the landscape and the speed at which they populate \u2026 and the speed with which they spread.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jack Gough says feral pigs cost Australia about $150m per year. (Supplied: Invasive Species Council)<\/p>\n
Mr Gough said 85 per cent of a feral pig population needed to be removed annually to ensure the population did not grow.<\/p>\n
“A population of about 100 pigs, in good circumstances without control, can get to about 30,000 within a decade,” he said.<\/p>\n
Mr Stevens said feral pigs cost Australia more than $150 million per year and that there were maximum penalties of a $125,000 fine or two years’ imprisonment for their illegal release.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mike Stevens says there have been several signs that people are trying to get feral pigs established. (ABC South East SA: Josh Brine)<\/p>\n
Ears removed from some pigs<\/p>\n
Mr Stevens said some pregnant female pigs in south-west Victoria had had their ears cut off, which made it harder for pig dogs to capture them.<\/p>\n
“It’s a technique that’s known that if you’re trying to establish animals, remove the ears, which means it’s less likely for them to be caught,” he said.<\/p>\n
“The feedback we’ve had from some landholders across the border is that we’ve got feral pigs within about 18 kilometres of the South Australian border.<\/p>\n
“There’s already been some anecdotal reports of some dispersing males that have been shot on our side of the metaphorical fence.”<\/p>\n
The illegal attempts to establish a population in the region have been unsuccessful so far. (Supplied: Limestone Coast Landscape Board)<\/p>\n