Pig monitoring

Feral pigs cause serious damage to native

Hawaiian ecosystems, disturbing native

vegetation and spreading invasive weeds.

Researchers at the University of Hawai'i at

Manoa Department of Natural Resources

and Environmental Management are

creating a model of feral pig impact on

O'ahu using survey data from camera traps.

Gill 'Ewa Lands facilitated the survey on

lands at Pālehua; other sites were also used.

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The researchers found that pig activity was the same regardless of whether hunting occurred in the area or not, and that the pig count strongly correlates with annual rainfall, vegetation height and vegetation density. For more details on the survey, read the paper “Ecological Modelling of Optimal Pig Management Strategies for Recreational Hunting and Conservation Purposes on O'ahu: Stage 1 report.”