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Research Goals for the APHIS National Feral Swine Damage Management Program

This Spring, APHIS kicked-off the National Feral Swine Damage Management Program. The effort will help states deal with rapidly expanding feral swine populations that cause $1.5 billion in annual damages and control costs. Wildlife Services (WS) experts will lead the $20 million, multi-year program with help from APHIS’ Veterinary Services (VS) and International Services. [Source: APHIS]

Invasive feral swine damage every resource APHIS works to protect— agriculture, property, natural resources, and human health. As such, APHIS plans to address feral swine issues from multiple fronts, including field operations, disease and population monitoring, and research. Research by WS and VS scientists will support strategic management decisions and provide the modeling and analysis needed to evaluate the program’s overall effectiveness. APHIS feral swine research is divided into five focus areas. Below are examples of some of the activities planned for each area in 2014-2015:

  1. Damage assessments and economics WS and VS scientists are contracting with the National Agricultural Statistics Service to survey crop and livestock producers in January 2015 about feral swine damage. Scientists will also compare the costs and benefits associated with feral swine damage and management to resources, such as crops, rangelands, imperiled wetlands, and endangered species.
  2. Toxicant development and delivery The most promising formulations will be further tested in hopes of registering a final product with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Research on biomarkers, swine-specific toxicants, and delivery systems is also ongoing.
  3. Detection and population estimation APHIS experts will be the first to use models to estimate feral swine occurrence and distribution at a national scale. WS geneticists are also employing new technologies, such as environmental DNA and whole genome sequencing, to detect feral swine.
  4. Disease risks WS and VS scientists are identifying regions and populations at risk for disease transmission between feral swine and livestock. They are also estimating contact rates between feral swine and livestock, and modeling how foreign animal diseases might spread within feral swine populations.
  5. Fertility control Fertility control may be useful in certain situations when lethal methods are impractical or infeasible. As such, WS experts are investigating fertility control methods to cause permanent sterility in feral swine.

For additional information, read the entire announcement at the APHIS Reigstry.