Feral hogs populations are expected to grow in Green Country

Feral hogs have been a problem around the country for years, and wildlife experts say it's not one that is going away.

A new website launched by the Oklahoma-based Noble Foundation is working to centralize information about the animal.

The feral hogs damage fields, crops, hay and fences and it can cost farmers and ranchers a lot.

Tommy Hobbs, who owns an O kmulgee County acreage, has been plagued by hogs in the past.

"He weighed a little over 400 pounds and I caught him in a trap," Hobbs said of one of the hogs.  

According to wildlife experts, feral hogs have been a big problem in southeast and central Oklahoma, along the Red River.

"Pecan season comes, they'll just get right underneath your pecan tree and just root it up where you can't even harvest your pecans," he said.

Since the population grows quickly, experts expect hog numbers to continue their rise.

"It's something that we really need to be aware of," said Bruce Peverley, an educator for the Oklahoma State University Extension office in Tulsa County. "In certain areas of the state it's already an epidemic."

The OSU Extension offices are linked to the new Noble Foundation website.

"It's a team effort," Peverly said. "We're all trying to help the farmers, the ranchers and the people of Oklahoma control the menace that many people are not aware of."

Foundation officials say the site is an accurate source of information for residents dealing with the problem, with tips on how to trap them, hunt them and spot the damage they cause.

"We just have to use all the tools we have available to control this menace," Peverly said.

This year, Gov. Mary Fallin signed legislation to help limit feral hog populations , including making it illegal to bring them into the state.