A pack of wild boars tore up a school last week in Sonoma County, California, just north of San Francisco. The animals ripped up the grounds, destroyed irrigation systems, and left a mess in their wake. According to the Geyserville Unified School District, the boars caused over $150,000 in damages.
"At first, I thought my maintenance crew was doing repairs on our sprinklers," said Superintendent Deborah Bertolucci. "Then I realized, 'Oh no, it's the pigs.' It's crazy."
From SFGate:
The history of wild pigs in California is a twisted tale. Native to Eurasia and Northern Africa, domestic pigs were introduced to the state in the early 1700s when Spanish colonizers brought them in as livestock, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Some Russian immigrants also let a number of them loose near Fort Ross in Sonoma in the 1800s — many of which fled for good and became feral. The animals likely propagated after an eccentric socialite let European wild boars, a subspecies, run rampant across his Carmel Valley property for hunting excursions in the 1920s. The boars bred with the domestic pigs, resulting in the large, hybrid porcine breed we know today, which can grow up to 5 feet long and weigh as much as 400 pounds.
[Bertolucci is] trying to turn the situation into a real-world learning opportunity for students. An agricultural science class went out this week to observe discussions with school officials and offer their own ideas for mitigating the pig problem and where the cyclone fencing should be deployed. Many of the students said they didn't want the school to "look like a prison," she said.
"The minute you start closing everything off, it seems like you're trying to keep people out," Bertolucci said. "The only thing I want out are the wild pigs."
Previously:
• More than 30-50 Feral Canadian Hybrid 'Super Pigs' reportedly headed towards USA
• Wild boar steals laptop, gets chased by a naked German man
