How to stop feral hogs from causing millions of dollars in damage each year

How to stop feral hogs² from causing millions of dollars in damage each year

　　Transcript³

　　Some states encourage hunting to control the hogs, but others believe banning hunting is the way to go to keep hog¹ populations down. (This story originally aired on Morning Edition on July 7, 2021.)

　　STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

　　Across this country, feral hogs are causing problems. Who knew? Wild pigs cause more than $2.5 billion in damages each year when they root up land and crops. So I guess farmers knew. Some states encourage hunting hogs, and others have come up with a surprising solution, which we're going to hear in a story that was first brought to us by Seth Bodine of member station KOSU last summer.

　　(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)

　　SETH BODINE: It's estimated that there are more than 6 million feral hogs across the country. And they can be huge, weighing up to 200 pounds - about the same as a Great Dane. The damage they cause can be extensive.

　　DYLON SCHOONOVER: It's a menace, and they don't do nothing but tear up your property.

　　BODINE: That's Dylon Schoonover, a hunting guide at Hog Wild Preserve in Purcell, Okla. Oklahoma's one of the states that still encourages hunting to help control the population.

　　(SOUNDBITE OF RAIN)

　　BODINE: On a rainy day, Schoonover is leading Todd Kissinger on a hunt. After zigzagging⁴ through the woods for more than an hour, they see a group of hogs, and he starts to make oinking noises to lure⁵ them closer.

　　SCHOONOVER: I told you there's a bunch of pigs in here.

　　TODD KISSINGER: Yeah.

　　SCHOONOVER: (Imitating pig).

　　BODINE: Kissinger came here from Kansas just for this hunt. As a farmer and rancher in Mulvane, Kan., he understands how damaging some wildlife can be.

　　KISSINGER: We have huge flocks of geese that come in on our wheat fields, and they will mow⁶ it down. I mean, they will just eat it down to the bare dirt. So I can only imagine what a bunch of hogs will do when that's what their deal is to do 24/7 - is to eat, root and tear up.

　　BODINE: But allowing hunting can be a double-edged sword. Dale Nolte heads the USDA's Feral Swine Program. One of the problems is that people move hogs around to different areas to incentivize hunting opportunities.

　　DALE NOLTE: One of the big struggles we have is this - what seems to be a constant release of animals back into areas where they've been removed or into new areas.

　　BODINE: In the Midwest, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska already have restrictions⁷ on hunting feral hogs. Sam Wilson with the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission says when you allow hunting, it's actually harder to control the population.

　　SAM WILSON: The law seems counterintuitive at first because we're prohibiting people from hunting feral hogs. However, if you know anything about hunting and hunting culture, often the people who hunt deer, for instance, are interested in having good deer populations.

　　BODINE: The 2018 Farm Bill created funds for wildlife services to address hog problem areas, and the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation started restricting hunting in those areas. But Eric Cowan, who works for the Animal Plant and Health Inspection⁸ Service (ph) in Oklahoma, says he runs into roadblocks trying to trap hogs on private land.

　　ERIC COWAN: We've got to have their permission, and there's a lot of people that don't - won't give us permission to work on their property.

　　BODINE: While states with growing wild hog populations are adding more restrictions, others like Texas and Oklahoma are still embracing the hunting of feral hogs. And hunting guides like Schoonover insist they're helping⁹ control the hogs.

　　SCHOONOVER: Just like a manager of a company manages the company and the employees are employees, we manage populations, you know? And, in turn, we get to eat awesome¹⁰, awesome meat.

　　BODINE: But guys like Schoonover might have a hard time finding a place to hunt as more and more states embrace hunting bans as a way to control populations.

　　For NPR News, I'm Seth Bodine in Oklahoma City.

　　(SOUNDBITE OF KYLE MCEVOY AND STAN FOREBEE'S "ONTEORA LAKE")

1 hog   

n.猪；馋嘴贪吃的人；vt.把…占为己有，独占

参考例句：

• He is greedy like a hog.他像猪一样贪婪。
• Drivers who hog the road leave no room for other cars.那些占着路面的驾驶员一点余地都不留给其他车辆。

2 hogs   

n.（尤指喂肥供食用的）猪( hog的名词复数 )；（供食用的）阉公猪；彻底地做某事；自私的或贪婪的人

参考例句：

• 'sounds like -- like hogs grunting. “像——像是猪发出的声音。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
• I hate the way he hogs down his food. 我讨厌他那副狼吞虎咽的吃相。 来自辞典例句

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 zigzagging   

v.弯弯曲曲地走路，曲折地前进( zigzag的现在分词 )；盘陀

参考例句：

• She walked along, zigzagging with her head back. 她回头看着，弯弯扭扭地向前走去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We followed the path zigzagging up the steep slope. 我们沿着小径曲曲折折地爬上陡坡。 来自互联网

5 lure   

n.吸引人的东西，诱惑物；vt.引诱，吸引

参考例句：

• Life in big cities is a lure for many country boys.大城市的生活吸引着许多乡下小伙子。
• He couldn't resist the lure of money.他不能抵制金钱的诱惑。

6 mow   

v.割（草、麦等），扫射，皱眉；n.草堆，谷物堆

参考例句：

• He hired a man to mow the lawn.他雇人割草。
• We shall have to mow down the tall grass in the big field.我们得把大田里的高草割掉。

7 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

8 inspection   

n.检查，审查，检阅

参考例句：

• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。
• The soldiers lined up for their daily inspection by their officers.士兵们列队接受军官的日常检阅。

9 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

10 awesome   

adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的

参考例句：

• The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
• That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.