Why Are Tags and Licenses Needed for Hunting Feral Pigs?

December 9, 2010

Question: Please explain why the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) requires a hunting license and tags to hunt and kill feral pigs. Feral pigs, as the name implies, are domestic pigs that have gone wild. They are an invasive species that destroys the environment and spreads disease. Proper and responsible environmental management would mandate the eradication of this invasive species; yet DFG has a policy that discourages killing feral pigs by charging fees. Why is this? (Curtis A.)

Answer: DFG requires a valid license and tag to legally take a wild pig. According to DFG Wild Pig Program Coordinator Marc Kenyon, Fish and Game Code, section 4650 says that any free-ranging, non-domesticated pig is classified as a wild pig, and therefore is considered big game. DFG instituted the tagging requirement as a means to continuously monitor California’s wild pig population. This information is used by DFG biologists, in concert with private and public landowners, to develop pig management plans that are intended to protect cultural and natural resources from the damage wild pigs are known to cause. Without the wild pig harvest report information, private and public land managers would lack the information necessary to develop these plans of action. Furthermore, the revenues generated by the sale of wild pig tags are used by DFG to monitor disease transmission, evaluate environmental impacts of wild pigs and provide the public with additional hunting opportunities. Your participation in this process is greatly appreciated.

Wild pigs have no seasons or size restrictions or daily bag limit. The sale of pig tags helps generate much-needed funding for DFG biologists to use for managing pigs and the habitat where they live. By managing and improving the habitat for pigs, a wide variety of other species that occupy the same land/habitat also benefit from these efforts.