Landowners happy as pigs in the mud

FOR as long as Ralph Cox can remember, feral pigs have been a problem in the Whitsundays.

PEST CONTROL: Whitsunday Regional Council’s Bren Fuller and grazier Ralph Cox on a tour of Mr Cox’s property. Picture: Matthew Newton

FOR as long as Ralph Cox can remember, feral pigs have been a problem in the Whitsundays.

But in recent years, inroads have been made into keeping their numbers in check.

"If they were left alone, (the population) would just explode," Mr Cox said.

While Mr Cox believes the area's wild pigs will never be fully eradicated, he sees management programs like Whitsunday Regional Council's Feral Pig Control program as key to keeping their numbers down.

"You can ask anyone that's in (the program) and it's definitely a real success," Mr Cox said.

Feral pigs are a destructive pest that affect graziers and cane farmers alike.

As well as carrying diseases like leptospirosis and foot and mouth, pigs damage watercourses and increase sediment runoff, predate upon native animals and damage horticultural crops like sugar cane.

Warren Watts, who grows cane on the banks of the Andromache River, also believes in the success of the program.

"Yeah, they're doing a good job. It's another way to combat (the pigs) from the air, which seems to be working well," he said.

"(Pigs) can do anywhere up to $5-10,000 worth of damage each year.

"The program reduces the cost and keeps them under control."

Last week, Whitsunday Regional Council technical officer for pest and vector control Bren Fuller took to the skies, culling pigs from the air.

Aerial shooting, together with baiting and trapping, form the crux of Mr Fuller's three-pronged, co-ordinated approach to feral pig management in the region.

"(Bren) coordinates everything," Mr Cox said.

"He coordinates the baiting and he coordinates the shooting; he does all the hard work, he organises everything ... and we (the landowners) just fall into line with times and what suits everyone best.

"Without Bren it wouldn't work."

Mr Fuller has been running the Feral Pig Control Program since he started at the council 10 years ago and says that while there can be sudden influxes of pig numbers due to environmental factors, the amount of damage done by pigs is on the decline.

Another aerial shoot is organised for August 11.

Pig facts

Feral pigs can produce two weaned litters of 5-6 piglets per litter every 12-15 months.

Feral pigs can carry bacteria that causes diseases in humans and livestock, including leptospirosis, foot and mouth disease, swine brucellosis and meliodosos.

Several declared weed species are known to be spread by feral pigs.

Aerial shooting of feral pigs from a helicopter is an effective and relatively cost-efficient method of population control.