This webinar is part of the Virginia Master Naturalist Continuing Education series. Description: A feral hog (feral pig, wild pig, wild boar, etc.) is simply any free-ranging pig (Sus scrofa) that is surviving on its own in the wild without human ownership. Any loose hog in the wild is bad news to wildlife and habitat resources. Virginia is on the front lines of the northward spread of feral hogs in the eastern United States. Feral hogs are detrimental to natural habitats and endangered native plant and animal species. Once established, they are nearly impossible to eradicate. Adult feral hogs have no natural predators aside from humans and exhibit very high reproductive potential. DGIF has teamed with partner state and federal natural resource agencies and created a feral hog committee comprised of wildlife biologists and conservation police officers to address the growing feral hog problem in Virginia. Learn more about the work of DGIF on this important issue and how you can help report sightings of these invasive animals.
Presenter: Aaron Proctor has been a district wildlife biologist for the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries since 2007. He covered the southeast portion of the state from 2006 until 2013 and now covers the greater Richmond area and all surrounding counties up through the Northern Neck. He is a native of Staunton, Virginia and received his B.S. in Wildlife Science from Virginia Tech and his M.S. in Fisheries and Wildlife Resources from West Virginia University.