It may not be deer or elk causing damage on farms in Central and Northern Alberta.

Inspector with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry, Perry Abramenko, says wild boars have become a problem for agriculture and the environment.

"They can damage crops, they get into stored feed and damage bales, or grain piles, or silage bags. There's a risk of them spreading disease to both domestic animals and people."

Abramenko says the boars also harass livestock away from their feed and can contaminate water sources.

He says the increased problem could be because of population growth or more awareness.

"A lot of producers could be experiencing damage caused by wild boar and could be attributing it to deer or elk, because the tracks look very similar. When wild boar are active mostly at night, then it would be hard for the producer to know for sure what's causing the damage."

He says through their pilot project, they track the animals using drones so they know where to set up corral traps to capture and euthanize the boars.

The pilot is focusing its efforts in Lac Ste. Anne County and Woodlands County, but Abramenko says they're getting reports of sightings all over the province.

Abramenko says cameras monitor the boar corral traps and he can use an app on his phone to close the gate.

Anyone who suspects they may have damage from wild boards is asked to call the Ag Info Centre at 310-FARM.

 

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