Hybrid species of wild boar "flooded" Greece: what are the risks

The environmental organization “Νέμεσις” calls for immediate action on the problem of the phenomenon of a sharp increase in the number of hybrid wild boars, which pose a direct threat to the extinction of the Eurasian wild boar.

In its statement, the federation asks the authorities and competent authorities to take effective measures to solve the problem. In particular, as stated in the relevant press release, “The NEMESIS Panhellenic Federation has sent a documented and substantiated report to the leadership of ΥΠΕΚΑ, YPAAT, as well as to legally competent authorities, political party leadership and the media, indicating its position regarding problem solving sharp increase in the population of hybrid wild boars, which has been observed in recent years in the country.

“The rapid growth in the number of the hybrid species, which has been observed suddenly since the early 2000s and creates problems, is being erroneously explained by the alleged uncontrolled crossbreeding of free-range domestic pigs with wild boarsto hide the real reasons for the current situation. This is a new phenomenon that has become international, from which many European countries suffer, such as Italy (extensive pig farms are only in Sardinia) and Germany, where there are no extensive domestic pig farms, as well as Canada, the USA (there are hybrids – offspring of crossed American breeds of domestic pigs with wild boar, which for their resistance to cold was originally bred on open Canadian farms, and today their population has spread to Texas), etc.

The reality is that the mass hybridization of wild boars in Greece seems to be beneficial either in terms of illegal enrichment from hunting (for example, in the Peloponnese), or with the encouragement of semi-extensive and extensive breeding of wild boar hybrids (something went wrong and the enterprises closed ), and the animals were destroyed, abandoned, or escaped from open farms. The reasons for the mass appearance and spread of such (new) species of animals are similar, and are observed almost all over the world.

Measures to combat the problem of the population explosion of hybrid animals (with horizontal measures of chasing wild boars by brigades made up of hunters in Greece) are wrong and ineffective. And the decision to let the situation take its course, especially in our country, poses a direct threat to the existence and survival of the populations of the Eurasian wild boar (sus scrofa) in Greece.

The conservation organization NEMESIS is calling on the Greek government to stop the harmful and ineffectual practice of persecuting these animals. The authorities need to acknowledge the problem immediately and responsibly. It is necessary to intervene to stop the “hunting lobby” and restore balance in the wild.”

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