VISAKHAPATNAM: The population of wild boars is dwindling in north Andhra districts due to loss of habitation, restricted access to food sources due to change in agricultural practices by farmers, and vanishing water tanks in rural areas due to urbanisation. Illegal poaching also has a role to play.
Wild boars usually thrive in areas where there is enough food. They especially feed on sugar cane, groundnut and melons. However, due to migratory trends in the rural belt, most farmers have stopped producing these crops. North Andhra districts have a forest cover of around 28%, covering 6.58 lakh hectares out of 23.53 hectares of geographical area. While the forest cover is 42% in Visakhapatnam district, it is 20% in Vizianagaram and 11% in Srikakulam.
A senior forest official said over 3,000 hectares of forest land in the region has been encroached in the last one decade. While there were around 30,000 wild boars in north Andhra districts a decade ago, the number has now dropped to around 20,000. Chief conservator of forests K Rama Mohan Rao told TOI no census has ever been done on wild boars.
“They normally have a tendency to move on to greener pastures to survive. Due to damage to crops caused by the boars, farmers are erecting electrical fences at their farm fields. All the wild boars need is some bush cover and access to food, which they are finding difficult to get. Illegal poaching is also a big reason behind their dwindling population,” he said.
All the wild boars need is some bush cover and access to food, which they are finding difficult to get due to fencing of farms
