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Boar nest. The nest built by the sow for giving birth is an admirable feat, a model of hard work and dedication. One by one, she has broken off hundreds of branches from the bog pines with her teeth, carried them all into one pile and created a tunnel or cave in it. In this the piglets were to have been born. And so they would have, but when a human (me) got too close to the nest sadly the sow’s nerves couldn’t stand it and she fled. All  the hard construction work had been in vain.

 

Who are they and what do they do in our forests?

 

Wild boars are herd animals. In a herd the individuals living there are related between themselves. From a human point of view there are grandmothers, mothers, aunts, sisters. In addition piglets and juveniles. The herd is led by the oldest and most experienced sow. Adult male boars lead a solitary life.

 

Boars live at the northern limit of their range in Estonia. Thus winter is a critically important season for them. Frozen ground and thick snow make getting at food difficult. Hunters take care of feeding most wild boars. Thanks to this the number of wild boar has been so high lately.

 

On feeding the wild boar we also feed raccoon dogs. Bears, roe deer and many others get their bellies filled from feeding grounds meant for boars. The food is however not always suitable for roe deer. Frozen potatoes for instance can cause diarrhoea.

 

Some boar herds in larger nature reserve areas manage without human aid. Their winter menu mainly consists of reed and bulrush rhizomes, spruce shoots and raspberry canes. They look for animal food (insect larva etc) in shallow ditches and small rivers. Any kind of carrion is welcome. Such boar herds can be recognized by their excrements.

 

This winter, soon gone, will be remembered by the wild boar as paradise: unfrozen ground and almost no snow. Ideal wintering conditions. The end of February also ended the hunting of boars with dogs. The boar flocks, scattered by aggressive hunting dogs, can gather again

 

Sows are about to start giving birth.