The main reason, as you might guess, is for the pleasure of hunting these magnificent animals. Based on current data, we can say that there haven’t been any wild boar living in the wild in the UK for the last 300 years.
The bloodlines of the wild boar spreading across the country now mainly came from France, Belgium, Germany, and Croatia dating from the end of the 17th or early 18th centuries. Now there are several places in the country where wild boar have become well established and where they are breeding very well and spreading in to nearby grounds, but at the same time, it is still very allocated.
Occasional boar pass through some of my hunting grounds and that is a very exciting time for me. Managing wild boar is essential in the UK as the climate here is very beneficial for and accommodating to these animals. The fact that winters here are very mild gives wild boar the opportunity of breeding almost all year round.
When the ground has a moderate number of wild boar, it can actually be beneficial to the local fauna, as they lift the topsoil and by doing this improve the oxygen penetration, thus benefitting the growth of young plants and root development. By randomly doing it throughout the woodland, it can actually help establish the undergrowth which is crucial for insects and ground-nesting birds.
But at the same time, if numbers of these animals are too high (the population has a tendency to grow rapidly if it is not controlled), they can create a lot of issues for land managers and landowners. They may cause potential destruction to large areas of undergrowth, grasslands, young trees, spawn and nearby farms. That is why management of wild boar is necessary.
In my opinion, knowledge of the ground is always the key to success, as based on this, you can set up feeding stations, cameras and “shooting points” which allow you to:
1) count heads
2) monitor health
3) take clean shots
All three of the above are equally important in a successful management program.
Having a good relationship with neighbouring landowners and hunters can always help in implementing improved control and in gaining a better understanding of animal movements.