The boar lazes. The dried tree is a very pleasant place for him, here he can scratch himself, get rid of the old fur and leave his scent marks. The boar enjoys all these activities.
Trail camera video assembled by  Kalle Pihelgas

Posted by the Team of the Animal of the Year 09.05.2017

It is good to see the cheerful boar. It means that some boars are still there in the Estonian forests. But how many – nobody can say precisely. ”The ASF plague ravages as before and a large part of the mainland is empty of boars,” says Tõnis Korts, manager of the Estonian Hunters’ Association and adds that the ´hunters too have many questions. ”As we see in the trail camera news, events in nature proceed despite the pest. Where there is a sow and a male boar left there are also piglets to see. But these are quite rare images. On Saaremaa and Hiiumaa boars may be encountered, also to a small extent in western Estonia In many areas the aim to bring the number of boars to 1,5 individuals per 1000 hectares has been achieved. What further? Hunters too wait for directives here. We know that when the aim has been achieved then arguably the pest will recede. The hunters’ task is to hunt off the animals within the limit of increase and to observe the requirements of biological safety. A question that waits for an answer is however what happens when the numbers are below 1,5 individuals per 1000 hectares? Nobody has been able to give an answer to that, not even theoretically. Does nature, the boars and we all need the seed to be there in the forest? In order to develop immunity, at least theoretically? There are more questions than answers. In nature nothing is 100%. Who believes that will certainly err. Nature acts universally and our knowledge always lags behind. This must always be kept in mind in experiments and we must behave prudently.

A good friend and hunter from Tartumaa proposed that all boars to be seen should be shot. It seems like a quite good idea. We never see all. Shoot the visible, weaker, less prudent ones. Sounds like something that tends towards what is called the natural selection. Maybe there is a kernel of truth here …? Go figure it out …

Helen Arusoo