It's interesting (at least to me) that in contrast to the feral hog explosion, the true wild European boars introduced in West Virginia early in the 20th century are slowly disappearing. The state continues to allow hunting, but has pretty much given up on maintaining the population as a viable hunting resource. They inhabit some of the roughest terrain in the state and from all accounts are very difficult to hunt. You would think that if feral hogs can seemingly prosper to the point of becoming a pestilence, right under our noses, true bad-ass wild boars would at least hold their own under truly wild conditions. Apparently not.
The state suggests that habitat loss from mining and depredation by the growing bear and coyotes populations is a big factor. Poaching hasn't been mentioned, and given the terrain, I can see why.
Meanwhile, the threat of feral hogs invading from North Carolina, via Virginia seems to be very real. Go figure.
