Governments rush to stop invasive species, including feral boars, invading North America
We’d gotten about as far into the Florida brush as my midsize rental could go, but we were still several miles from the pig trap. So I parked next to a barbed wire fence, and climbed up into the back seat of our guide’s pickup truck with W5 producer, Denise Kimmel.
As we started bumping forward, Denise discreetly tapped my shoulder and nodded toward the coffee mug sitting between the two front seats. The black, bold lettering made it clear what our guide’s political views were: “I Lubricate my Guns with Liberal Tears.”
We weren’t in Toronto any more, Toto.
We’d come to Florida for our W5 story on invasive species, because nowhere else in North America is as overrun. Florida is now home to Burmese pythons, green iguanas, tegu lizards, giant African land snails, lionfish, and more than 500 other non-native plants and animals.
In the world of invasive species, Florida is king. The sunshine state is home to hundreds of invasive species. (W5)
But even against that list, the feral pig stands apart. Its intelligence, the magnitude of the damage it causes and its ability to always stay two steps ahead of humans’ attempts to corral them make pigs an especially ominous foe. And they aren’t just in Florida. They’re marching across the United States, and quickly making inroads into Canada.
As a biologist, I’m both fascinated and terrified by invasive pigs. And as an avid hunter and outdoorsman, our host Mike French has seen first-hand how smart, elusive, and destructive they can be.
Today, Mike was leading us to one of his favourite hunting spots, a secluded area just a few miles from Yeehaw Junction, where we’d be able to see the latest tool in the battle against boars: a live trap called the “Pig Brig.”
Driving along the edge of a pasture, with a stand of palmetto trees beside us, I told Mike how beautiful I thought the landscape was. Mike said it was his favourite place in the world.
Before long, the truck came to a stop in a small clearing. Some other local hunters who had come along pulled up beside us with our W5 cameraman, Jerry Vienneau. Together, we walked up to have a look at the empty trap.
The “Pig Brig” consisted of a circular ring of soft, but strong netting, about as tall as my armpits. Where the walls of the pen met the floor, there were several extra feet of netting, which spread out like the train of a wedding dress toward the inside of the circle.
This arrangement allows pigs to easily get into the trap – rooting their way under the netting as they press their snouts into the ground. But it makes it very hard for a pig to get back out, since by the time its head touches the wall, it's already standing on the net itself.
We took a little while to explore the area. I pointed out a Yellow-throated Warbler (my first one!), and Mike showed us evidence of deer having recently passed through. Together, our team put some bait into the trap (corn and leftover birthday cake), set up our cameras, then headed back to the vehicles. With any luck, we’d have footage of pigs going into the net that very night.
I get a lot out of exploring new places – it’s one of the things I love most about reporting for W5. But as I thanked Mike, and got back into my own car, I thought back to the first impression I’d gotten from his coffee mug, and realized I’d gotten something else from my experience in nature that day.
Mike and I come from fairly different worlds, and in other settings we might have found ourselves arguing about some topic or another. But that day we’d really just enjoyed one another’s company. Everyone loves being outside, in nature. That’s one thing that unites all of us. And that’s just another great reason to protect nature from the onslaught of invasive species.
Correspondent Dan Riskin; Producer Denise Kimmel
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
ByteDance prefers TikTok shutdown in U.S. if legal options fail, Reuters sources say
TikTok owner ByteDance would prefer to shut down its loss-making app rather than sell it if the Chinese company exhausts all legal options to fight legislation to ban the platform from app stores in the U.S., four sources said.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Improve balance and build core strength with this exercise
When it comes to cardiovascular fitness, you may tend to focus on activities that move you forward, such as walking, running and cycling.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Local Spotlight
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fergus, Ont. man feels nickel-and-dimed for $0.05 property tax bill
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
Twins from Toronto were Canada's top two female finishers at this year's Boston Marathon
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
'I'm committed': Oilers fan won't cut hair until Stanley Cup comes to Edmonton
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
'It's not my father's body!' Wrong man sent home after death on family vacation in Cuba
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
'Once is too many times': Education assistants facing rising violence in classrooms
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
What is capital gains tax? How is it going to affect the economy and the younger generations?
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
UBC football star turning heads in lead up to NFL draft
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.