Search

Simple Summary: The spread of invasive wild pigs across the United States has been successfully slowed due to the establishment of a national management program. In this paper, we study the effectiveness of the national program by modeling the spread of wild pigs in the absence of intervention. Further, we use the models to assess the value of resources safeguarded from the threat of wild pigs. Our findings indicate that, on average, invasive wild pigs were prevented from spreading to 724 counties, and USD 40.2 billion in resource value was safeguarded over the first eight years of the program. Continuation of the program will deliver additional benefits and further research is critical to understand its comprehensive economic effects. Wild pigs (Sus scrofa) are one of the most destructive invasive species in the US, known for causing extensive damage to agricultural commodities, natural resources, and property, and for transmitting diseases to livestock. Following the establishment of the National Feral Swine Damage Management Program (NFSDMP) in 2014, the expansion of wild pig populations has been successfully slowed. This paper combines two modeling approaches across eight separate models to characterize the expansion of wild pig populations in the absence of intervention by the NFSDMP and forecasts the value of a subset of resources safeguarded from the threat of wild pigs. The results indicate that if wild pigs had continued spreading at pre-program levels, they would have spread extensively across the US, with significant geographic variation across modeling scenarios. Further, by averting the threat of wild pigs, a substantial amount of crops, land, property, and livestock was safeguarded by the NFSDMP. Cumulatively, between 2014 and 2021, wild pig populations were prevented from spreading to an average of 724 counties and an average of USD 40.2 billion in field crops, pasture, grasses, and hay was safeguarded. The results demonstrate that intervention by the NFSDMP has delivered significant ecological and economic benefits that were not previously known. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Through compelling examples from various continents, Reidinger effectively illustrates the far-reaching consequences of invasive species on native ecosystems and local communities, and the complexities of mitigating damage. In Chapter 6, Communities, Ecosystems, and Landscapes, Reidinger equates ecosystems to communities - all organisms living in an area at a given time interacting with their abiotic components. Russell Reidinger's revised book, I Human-Wildlife Conflict Management: Prevention and Problem Solving i , provides a comprehensive and practical guide to understanding human-wildlife conflict, and offers a variety of effective strategies in prevention and resolution. [Extracted from the article]