Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Individual And Population Fitness Consequences Associated With Large Carnivore Use Of Residential Development, Heather Johnson, David L. Lewis, Stewart W. Breck

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Large carnivores are negotiating increasingly developed landscapes, but little is known about how such behavioral plasticity influences their demographic rates and population trends. Some investigators have suggested that the ability of carnivores to behaviorally adapt to human development will enable their persistence, and yet, others have suggested that such landscapes are likely to serve as population sinks or ecological traps. To understand how plasticity in black bear (Ursus americanus) use of residential development influences their population dynamics, we conducted a 6-yr study near Durango, Colorado, USA. Using space-use data on individual bears, we examined the influence of use of residential …

Migratory Flyways May Affect Population Structure In Double‐Crested Cormorants, Steven J.A. Kimble, Brian S. Dorr, Katie C. Hanson-Dorr, Olin E. Rhodes Jr., Travis L. Devault

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Double‐crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) recovered from a demographic bottleneck so well that they are now considered a nuisance species at breeding and wintering grounds across the United States and Canada. Management of this species could be improved by refining genetic population boundaries and assigning individuals to their natal population. Further, recent radio‐telemetry data suggest the existence of Interior and Atlantic migratory flyways, which could reduce gene flow and result in substantial genetic isolation. In this study, we used 1,784 individuals collected across the eastern United States, a large panel of microsatellite markers developed for this species, and individuals banded as …

Effects Of Deepwater Horizon Oil On Feather Structure And Thermoregulation In Gulls: Does Rehabilitation Work?, Katherine Horak, Nicole L. Barrett, Jeremy W. Ellis, Emma M. Campbell, Nicholas G. Dannemiller, Susan A. Shriner

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Impacts of large-scale oil spills on avian species are far-reaching.While media attention often focuses on lethal impacts, sub-lethal effects and the impacts of rehabilitation receive less attention. The objective of our study was to characterize effects of moderate external oiling and subsequent rehabilitation on feather structure and thermoregulation in gulls. We captured 30 wild ring-billed gulls (Larus delawarensis) and randomly assigned each individual to an experimental group: 1) controls, 2) rehabilitated birds (externally oiled, rehabilitated by washing), or 3) oiled birds (externally oiled, not rehabilitated). We externally oiled birds with weathered MC252 Deepwater Horizon oil (water for controls) …

Optimal Bait Density For Delivery Of Acute Toxicants To Vertebrate Pests, Kim M. Pepin, Nathan P. Snow, Kurt C. Vercauteren

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Oral baiting is a fundamental method for delivering toxicants to pest species. Planning baiting strategies is challenging because bait-consumption rates depend on dynamic processes including space use and demographics of the target species. To determine cost-effective strategies for optimizing baiting, we developed a spatially explicit model of population dynamics using field-based measures of wild-pig (Sus scrofa) space use, bait consumption, and mortality probabilities. The most cost-effective baiting strategy depended strongly on the population reduction objective and initial density. A wide range of baiting strategies were cost-effective when the objective was 80% population reduction. In contrast, only a narrow range of …

Brodifacoum Residues In Fish Three Years After An Island-Wide Rat Eradication Attempt In The Tropical Pacific, Shane R. Siers, Aaron B. Shiels, Steven F. Volker, Kristen Rex, William C. Pitt

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Invasive rats are known to threaten natural resources and human health and safety. Island-wide rat eradication attempts have been increasing in number and scale during the past several decades, as has the frequency of eradication success. The most common method to remove all rats from an island is to broadcast anticoagulant rodenticide bait into every rat’s home range on the island. Broadcast of toxicants can put humans and other nontarget species in marine and terrestrial environments at risk of exposure. The persistence of anticoagulant residues is somewhat unknown, particularly in marine environments. Three years after ~ 18,000 kg of 25 …

Local Adaptation Constrains Drought Tolerance In A Tropical Foundation Tree, Kasey E. Barton, Casey Jones, Kyle F. Edwards, Aaron B. Shiels, Tiffany Knight

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

1. Plant species with broad climatic ranges might be more vulnerable to climate change than previously appreciated due to intraspecific variation in climatic stress tolerance. In tropical forests, drought is increasingly frequent and severe, causing widespread declines and altering community dynamics. Yet, little is known about whether foundation tropical trees vary in drought tolerance throughout their distributions, and how intraspecific variation in drought tolerance might contribute to their vulnerability to climate changE.
2. We tested for local adaptation in seedling emergence and establishment with a full-factorial reciprocal transplant experiment including 27 populations and 109,350 seeds along a 3,500 mm precipitation gradient for …

The Role Of European Starlings (Sturnus Vulgaris) In The Dissemination Of Multidrug- Resistant Escherichia Coli Among Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, Jeffrey C. Chandler, Jennifer E. Anders, Nicolas A. Blouin, James C. Carlson, Jeffrey T. Lejeune, Lawrence D. Goodridge, Baolin Wang, Leslie A. Day, Anna M. Mangan, Dustin A. Reid, Shannon M. Coleman, Matthew W. Hopken, Bledar Bisha

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Antimicrobial use in livestock production is a driver for the development and proliferation of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Wildlife interactions with livestock, acquiring associated AMR bacteria and genes, and wildlife’s subsequent dispersal across the landscape are hypothesized to play an important role in the ecology of AMR. Here, we examined priority AMR phenotypes and genotypes of Escherichia coli isolated from the gastrointestinal tracts of european starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) found on concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs). European starlings may be present in high numbers on cAfos (>100,000 birds), interact with urban environments, and can migrate distances exceeding 1,500 km in North …

Technical Limitations Associated With Molecular Barcoding Of Arthropod Bloodmeals Taken From North American Deer Species, Erin M. Borland, Daniel A. Hartman, Matthew W. Hopken, Antoinette J. Piaggio, Rebekah C. Kading

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Accurate species-level identification of the source of arthropod bloodmeals is important for deciphering blood feeding patterns of field-collected specimens. Cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) mitochondrial gene sequencing has been used for this purpose; however, species resolution can be difficult to obtain from certain vertebrate genera, including Odocoileus. Sanger sequencing of mitochondrial genes was employed to identify the bloodmeal source of wild-caught mosquitoes trapped in Greeley, Colorado. Initial sequencing of the COI gene of mitochondrial DNA in bloodmeals was inadequate for species-level resolution of bloodmeals from deer in the genus Odocoileus, with current databases returning low fidelity matches to …

Repellent Surface Applications For Pest Birds, Shelagh T. Deliberto, James C. Carlson, Hailey E. Mclean, Caroline S. Olson, Scott J. Werner

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Common pest birds in the United States include the non-native European starling (Sturnus vulgaris), house sparrow (Passer domesticus), and the pigeon (Columba livia domestica), as well as native birds including Canada geese (Branta canadensis) and gull species (Laridae). Large concentrations of pest birds can create human health hazards and monetary losses due to consumption of crops, depredation, and fecal contamination and accumulation. Fecal contamination hazards include the potential spread of zoonotic diseases including antimicrobial-resistant zoonoses and human injury due to the accumulation of fecal material on walking surfaces. Additionally, fecal accumulation causes …

Review Of Ospreys: The Revival Of A Global Raptor, By Alan F. Poole. 2019., Lisa Fields, Brian E. Washburn

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

For the past three decades, Alan Poole’s (1989) Ospreys: A Natural and Unnatural History has provided a solid foundation for those seeking a primer on the basic biology and ecology of Ospreys (Pandion haliaetus). Poole’s summary of knowledge about Ospreys was written at a time when these amazing birds were recovering from their DDTinduced population crash, but this important book has long been out of print. In the intervening decades, much has been learned regarding Ospreys. In his new book, Ospreys: The Revival of a Global Raptor, Poole guides the reader through a tour of Ospreys’ worldwide distribution and population …

Optimal Spatial Prioritization Of Control Resources For Elimination Of Invasive Species Under Demographic Uncertainty, Kim M. Pepin, Timothy J. Smyser, Amy J. Davis, Ryan S. Miller, Sophie Mckee, Kurt C. Vercauteren, William Kendall, Chris Slootmaker

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Populations of invasive species often spread heterogeneously across a landscape, consisting of local populations that cluster in space but are connected by dispersal. A fundamental dilemma for invasive species control is how to optimally allocate limited fiscal resources across local populations. Theoretical work based on perfect knowledge of demographic connectivity suggests that targeting local populations from which migrants originate (sources) can be optimal. However, demographic processes such as abundance and dispersal can be highly uncertain, and the relationship between local population density and damage costs (damage function) is rarely known. We used a metapopulation model to understand how budget and …

Ecological Drivers Of African Swine Fever Virus Persistence In Wild Boar Populations: Insight For Control, Kim M. Pepin, Andrew J. Golnar, Zaid Abdo, Tomasz Podgórski

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Environmental sources of infection can play a primary role in shaping epidemiological dynamics; however, the relative impact of environmental transmission on host-pathogen systems is rarely estimated. We developed and fit a spatially explicit model of African swine fever virus (ASFV) in wild boar to estimate what proportion of carcassbased transmission is contributing to the low-level persistence of ASFV in Eastern European wild boar. Our model was developed based on ecological insight and data from field studies of ASFV and wild boar in Eastern Poland. We predicted that carcass- based transmission would play a substantial role in persistence, especially in low-density …

Validation Of A Screening Method For The Detection Of Colistin-Resistant E. Coli Containing Mcr-1 In Feral Swine Feces, Jeffrey C. Chandler, Alan B. Franklin, S. N. Bevins, Kevin T. Bentler, Jonas Bonnedahl, Christina A. Ahlstrom, Bledar Bisha, Susan A. Shriner

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

A method was developed and validated for the detection of colistin-resistant Escherichia coli containing mcr-1 in the feces of feral swine. Following optimization of an enrichment method using EC broth supplemented with colistin (1 μg/mL) and vancomycin (8 μg/mL), aliquots derived from 100 feral swine fecal samples were spiked with of one of five different mcr-1 positive E. coli strains (between 10⁰ and 10⁴ CFU/g), for a total of 1110 samples tested. Enrichments were then screened using a simple boil-prep and a previously developed real-time PCR assay for mcr-1 detection. The sensitivity of the method was determined in …

Multi-Isotopic (Δ2h, Δ13c, Δ15n) Tracing Of Molt Origin For European Starlings Associated With U.S. Dairies And Feedlots, Scott Werner, J. W. Fischer, Keith A. Hobson

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Introduced bird species can become invasive in agroecosystems and their management is inhibited if their origin and movements are not well understood. Stable isotope measurements of feathers can be used to infer molt origins and interstate movements in North America. We analyzed stable-hydrogen (δ²H), carbon (δ¹³C) and nitrogen (δ ¹⁵N) isotope ratios in feathers to better understand the molt origin of European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) collected at dairies and feedlots throughout the United States. Primary feathers were used from 596 adult and 90 juvenile starlings collected during winter at dairies …

Rnai: Applications In Vertebrate Pest Management, Katherine Horak

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Sequence-directed inhibition of protein synthesis by RNAi has potential as a means to control pest wildlife. Species specific by design, RNAi reduces impacts on nontarget species and the environment. Additional research advancing the field of RNAi-based management of vertebrate pest wildlife is timely.

Despite the potential diverse applications of RNAi technology in vertebrates (fertility control, invasive species eradication, and pest species control to protect human health and agriculture), little progress has been made in applying RNAi to these classes of animals. A single proof-of-concept study using RNAi to control sea lampreys combined with recent advances in RNAi delivery have opened …

Tissue Tropisms Of Avian Influenza A Viruses Affect Their Spillovers From Wild Birds To Pigs, Xiaojian Zhang, Fred L. Cunningham, Lei Li, Katie Hanson-Dorr, Liyuan Liu, Kaitlyn Waters, Minhui Guan, Alicia K. Olivier, Brandon S. Schmit, Jacqueline M. Nolting, Andrew S. Bowman, Mia Kim Torchetti, Thomas J. Deliberto, Xiu-Feng Wan

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Wild aquatic birds maintain a large, genetically diverse pool of influenza A viruses (IAVs), which can be transmitted to lower mammals and, ultimately, humans. Through phenotypic analyses of viral replication efficiency, only a small set of avian IAVs were found to replicate well in epithelial cells of the swine upper respiratory tract, and these viruses were shown to infect and cause virus shedding in pigs. Such a phenotypic trait of the viral replication efficiency appears to emerge randomly and is distributed among IAVs across multiple avian species and geographic and temporal orders. It is not determined by receptor binding preference …

Invasive Wild Pigs As Primary Nest Predators For Wild Turkeys, Heather N. Sanders, David G. Hewitt, Humberto L. Perotto-Baldivieso, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Nathan P. Snow

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Depredation of wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) nests is a leading cause of reduced recruitment for the recovering and iconic game species. invasive wild pigs (Sus scrofa) are known to depredate nests, and have been expanding throughout the distributed range of wild turkeys in north America. We sought to gain better insight on the magnitude of wild pigs depredating wild turkey nests. We constructed simulated wild turkey nests throughout the home ranges of 20 GPS-collared wild pigs to evaluate nest depredation relative to three periods within the nesting season (i.e., early, peak, and late) and two nest densities (moderate = 12.5-25 …

Effect Of Vaccination With A Novel Gnrh-Based Immunocontraceptive On Immune Responses And Fertility In Rats, Giovanna Massei, D. Cowan, Douglas C. Eckery, Richard E. Mauldin, M. Gomm, P. Rochaix, Fergal Hill, R. Pinkham, Laura A. Miller

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

1. As human-wildlife conflicts increase worldwide, novel methods are required for mitigating these conflicts. Fertility control, based on immunocontraceptives, has emerged as an alternative option to lethal methods for managing wildlife.

2. Immunocontraceptives are vaccines that generate an immune response to key components of an animal's reproductive system. Some of these vaccines target the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and have been used successfully as contraceptives for many wildlife species. However, the need to capture animals for treatment limits the field applications of injectable vaccines. The availability of orally delivered immunocontraceptives would increase the breadth of applications of fertility control for wildlife …

Influenza A Viruses In Peridomestic Mammals, J. Jeffrey Root, Susan A. Shriner

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

During recent years, serological evidence has shown that a number of peridomestic mammals (e.g., those commonly found in or around human structures) are naturally exposed to influenza A viruses (IAVs). In addition, experimental studies have demonstrated that many of these species can successfully replicate several different IAVs, including IAVs of high consequence to public or agricultural health. The replication of some IAVs within this group of mammals could have implications for biosecurity associated with poultry production and live bird markets in some regions of the world. Given this evidence, the need for further study and understanding of the role that …

Invasive Rat Establishment And Changes In Small Mammal Populations On Caribbean Islands Following Two Hurricanes, Aaron B. Shiels, Claudia D. Lombard, Laura Shiels, Zandy Hillis-Starr

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Invasive mammals, particularly black rats (Rattus rattus), house mice (Mus musculus), and mongoose (Herpestes auropunctatus) are established on many tropical islands and threaten natural resources such as native birds, sea turtles, lizards, invertebrates, and plants. St. Croix (U.S. Virgin Islands, Caribbean) has a diversity of natural resources being protected from invasive mammals by U.S. conservation agencies. Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge and Buck Island Reef National Monument receive among the highest density of nesting sea turtles in the region, including annual nesting populations of 50e250 leatherbacks (Dermochelys coriacea), 25e80 hawksbills (Eretmochelys imbricata), and 100e250 green turtles (Chelonia mydas). Buck Island …

Gulls As Sources Of Environmental Contamination By Colistin-Resistant Bacteria, Alan B. Franklin, Andrew M. Ramey, Kevin T. Bentler, Nicole L. Barrett, Loredana M. Mccurdy, Christina A. Ahlstrom, Jonas Bonnedahl, Susan A. Shriner, Jeffrey C. Chandler

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

In 2015, the mcr-1 gene was discovered in Escherichia coli in domestic swine in China that conferred resistance to colistin, an antibiotic of last resort used in treating multi-drug resistant bacterial infections in humans. Since then, mcr-1 was found in other human and animal populations, including wild gulls. Because gulls could disseminate the mcr-1 gene, we conducted an experiment to assess whether gulls are readily colonized with mcr-1 positive E. coli, their shedding patterns, transmission among conspecifics, and environmental deposition. Shedding of mcr-1 E. coli by small gull flocks followed a lognormal curve and gulls shed one strain >101 …

Effects Of Wild Pig Disturbance On Forest Vegetation And Soils, Steven M. Gray, Gary J. Roloff, Daniel B. Kramer, Dwayne R. Etter, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Robert A. Montgomery

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

In North America, wild pigs (Sus scrofa; feral pigs, feral swine, wild boars) are a widespread exotic species capable of creating large‐scale biotic and abiotic landscape perturbations. Quantification of wild pig environmental effects has been particularly problematic in northern climates, where they occur only recently as localized populations at low densities. Between 2016 and 2017, we assessed short‐term (within ~2 yrs of disturbance) effects of a low‐density wild pig population on forest features in the central Lower Peninsula of Michigan, USA. We identified 16 8‐ha sites using global positioning system locations from 7 radio‐collared wild pigs for sampling.Within each …

Mixed Ancestry From Wild And Domestic Lineages Contributes To The Rapid Expansion Of Invasive Feral Swine, Timothy J. Smyser, Michael A. Tabak, Chris Slootmaker, Michael S. Robeson Ii, Ryan S. Miller, Mirte Bosse, Hendrik-Jan Megens, Martien A.M. Groenen, Samuel Rezende Paiva, Danielle Assis De Faria, Harvey D. Blackburn, Brandon S. Schmit, Antoinette J. Piaggio

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Invasive alien species are a significant threat to both economic and ecological systems. Identifying the processes that give rise to invasive populations is essential for implementing effective control strategies. We conducted an ancestry analysis of invasive feral swine (Sus scrofa, Linnaeus, 1758), a highly destructive ungulate that is widely distributed throughout the contiguous United States, to describe introduction pathways, sources of newly emergent populations and processes contributing to an ongoing invasion. Comparisons of high-density single nucleotide polymorphism genotypes for 6,566 invasive feral swine to a comprehensive reference set of S. scrofa revealed that the vast majority of feral swine were …

Timing And Extent Of Crop Damage By Wild Pigs (Sus Scrofa Linnaeus) To Corn And Peanut Fields, C. M. Boyce, Kurt C. Vercauteren, James C. Beasley

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The global expansion of wild pigs over the last few decades has resulted in an increase in extent and distribution of damages to crops, placing a growing strain on agricultural producers and land managers. Despite the extent of wild pig damage to agriculture, there is little data regarding timing and spatial variability of damage to corn (Zea mays Linnaeus) and we found no data regarding the effect of these factors on peanuts (Arachis hypogaea Linnaeus). Our objective was to determine the timing and extent of wild pig damage to corn and peanut fields, as well as the extent …

Placebo Oral Rabies Vaccine Bait Uptake By Small Indian Mongooses (Herpestes Auropunctatus) In Southwestern Puerto Rico, Are R. Berentsen, Richard B. Chipman, Kathleen M. Nelson, Kenneth S. Gruver, Frank Boyd, Steven F. Volker, Amy J. Davis, Ad Vos, Steffen Ortmann, Amy Gilbert

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The small Indian mongoose (Herpestes auropunctatus) is a rabies reservoir in areas of the Caribbean including Puerto Rico, but no rabies vaccination program targeting this host exists. We used two derivatives of iophenoxic acid (IPA) to evaluate placebo oral rabies vaccine bait uptake by mongooses in southwestern Puerto Rico. We hand-distributed baits at an application rate of 200 baits/km² at three, 400 ha, sites during autumn 2016 and spring 2017. Each site contained 90–100 cage traps in a 100 ha central trapping area. We used ethyl-IPA as a biological marker during the autumn and methyl-IPA during the …

Bird-Livestock Interactions Associated With Increased Cattle Fecal Shedding Of Ciprofloxacin-Resistant Escherichia Coli Within Feedlots In The United States, James C. Carlson, Jeffrey C. Chandler, Bledar Bisha, Jeffrey T. Lejeune, Thomas E. Wittum

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

This research study was conducted to determine if bird depredation in feedlots is associated with the prevalence of ciprofloxacin-resistant Escherichia coli in cattle and to determine if removal of invasive bird species could be an effective management strategy to help reduce ciprofloxacin-resistant E. coliin cattle within the United States. european starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) were collected from feedlots within multiple geographic regions within the United States and european starlings within all regions tested positive for ciprofloxacin-resistant E. coli, but prevalence differed by region. Total number of birds on feedlots were positively associated with increased cattle fecal shedding of ciprofloxacin-resistant E. coli. …

Fish-Eating Birds On Catfish Ponds In The Mississippi Delta, Paul Burr, Jimmy Avery, Garrett Street, Bronson Strickland, Brian Dorr

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Catfish acreage in the Mississippi Delta has significantly declined in the past two decades, but cormorant density on catfish ponds has remained the same. One possible explanation is that there are fewer cormorants in the region, and this is supported with decreasing roost counts. Cormorant roost harassment can be even more effective today than in the past, because there is less aquaculture acreage to protect and fewer cormorants to move. Roost harassment is important over the entire winter, but even more so around mid-January when cormorant abundance is greatest and when cormorants are more focused on aquaculture ponds. The addition …

Cormorant Predation Of Commercial Catfish Aquaculture In The Mississippi Delta, Terrel Christie, Brian Dorr, Luke Roy, Anita M. Kelly, Carole Engle, Paul Burr, Brian Davis, Jonathan Van Senten

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Catfish aquaculture is an important agricultural commodity in Mississippi with most of the production. occurring in the Delta region of the state. A vital factor in managing these farms is reducing fish loss from bird depredation. The most notable bird species that consume catfish are Double-crested Cormorants. These migratory waterbirds arrive in fall and remain in the region throughout winter. Cormorant interactions with catfish aquaculture have previously been studied, but recent changes in the industry warrant collection of new data to understand the dynamic between catfish aquaculture and cormorants. The Southern Regional Aquaculture Center recently funded a study to estimate …

Predator Scent And Visual Cue Applied To Nest Boxes Fail To Dissuade European Starlings (Sturnus Vulgaris) From Nesting, Bradley Blackwell, Thomas W. Seamans, Morgan Pfeiffer, Bruce N. Buckingham

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Indirect predator cues have been shown to enhance perceived nest predation risk in both open-cup and cavity-nesting birds. We hypothesized that scent from the raccoon (Procyon lotor) inside nest boxes, supplemented with raccoon hair as a visual cue on the outside of the box, would enhance perceived risk to the European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris), resulting in reduced use of treated nest boxes and negative effects on reproduction. The starling is recognized, outside its native range, as a competitor with indigenous cavity nesters and a pest species, and efforts to deter its nesting have generally been unsuccessful. …

Factors And Costs Associated With Removal Of A Newly Established Population Of Invasive Wild Pigs In Northern U.S., Justin W. Fischer, Nathan P. Snow, Bradley E. Wilson, Scott F. Beckerman, Christopher N. Jacques, Eric H. Vannatta, Shannon L. Kay, Kurt C. Vercauteren

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The human-mediated spread of exotic and invasive species often leads to unintentional and harmful consequences. Invasive wild pigs (Sus scrofa) are one such species that have been repeatedly translocated throughout the United States and cause extensive damage to natural ecosystems, threatened and endangered species, agricultural resources, and private lands. In 2005, a newly established population of wild pigs was confirmed in Fulton County, Illinois, U.S. In 2011, a state-wide wild pig damage management program involving federal, state, and local government authorities directed a concerted effort to remove wild pigs from the county until the last wild pig (of 376 total) …