[Title: Ask an Expert: Does Ontario have a plan in place to address invasive wild pigs?]
[Standing next to a wildlife trap in an open field, two research technicians from the Ontario Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry speak directly to camera. Images and aerial footage of invasive wild pigs are interspersed throughout.]
Speaker 1: We're a wildlife research technicians on the Wild Pig Team with the Province of Ontario.
Today's question is: Does Ontario have a plan in place to address invasive wild pigs?
Speaker 2: We've been working hard to prevent the establishment of invasive wild pigs in the province and have recently developed a strategy to address this threat across Ontario.
Speaker 1: As part of our strategy, pigs are now regulated under the Invasive Species Act, and as of January 1st, 2022, there will be new measures to address pig escapees, the risk of Eurasian wild boar in their hybrids and to prohibit hunting of wild pigs in the province.
When wild pigs are exposed to hunting, they flee into new areas to learn to avoid humans.
They're also quick to reproduce, and populations are known to rebound exponentially.
This means that hunting for wild pigs is not an effective way of controlling their spread.
Speaker 2: We're also on the ground following up on wild pig sightings that are reported by the public.
We lay bait, set up trail cameras and talk to local residents to learn as much as possible about each sighting.
Speaker 1: When necessary, we use large traps to remove wild pigs from the environment, traps much like this one you see here.
And you can learn more about what we're doing to address invasive wild pigs in Ontario.ca/Wildpigs.