Project Area

The expanded Louisiana Feral Swine Eradication and Control Pilot Program (LA FSCP) project area consists of approximately 16.6 million acres and encompasses the Red River and Mississippi River basins. Approximately 90 percent of those acres consist of privately-owned land with 52 percent in forest land, 40 percent in crop and livestock production, and 8 percent classified as herbaceous wetlands, which includes marsh, coastal prairie, and range. The remaining 10 percent of the Louisiana project area is equally divided into publicly owned forest land and publicly owned marsh, prairie, and range primarily as Kisatchie National Forest, Refuges, and Wildlife Management Areas. The project area crosses hundreds of watersheds based on the 12 Digit HUC classification. There are portions of 16 scenic waterways in the proposed project area that were established for preserving, protecting, reclaiming, and enhancing the wilderness qualities, scenic beauty, and ecological regimes of these free flowing Louisiana streams.

Map(s) 

Anticipated Partner Activities

In the Pilot Area, the NRCS and Partner funded project will require at least one technician fully equipped to assist APHIS-WS, scout, survey, monitor, bait, and trap feral swine on private lands. In all areas, APHIS-WS will serve in an operational control capacity and will be in communication with all control efforts. The Partner will assist, support and, facilitate APHIS WS operations when needed. The support will include landowner enrollment, preparation of GPS coordinated maps, providing shapefiles of targeted private lands, monitoring of feral swine high use areas, and conducting pre-baiting activities as needed. The purchase and utilization of necessary equipment such as appropriate traps (corral type being primary focus) will be essential. Trap management, including video monitoring traps, baiting trapping locations at appropriate intervals (determined by surveillance) to build high use, monitoring baited trap sites for advantageous times in triggering gates at appropriate times to apprehend the majority of sounder, and coordination on timely depopulation would be standard tasks. The Partner will also have the option to develop expanded landowner contracts for specific tasks a landowner has qualifications to successfully implement (such as trapping), to potentially provide direct financial assistance to agricultural producers in the pilot areas. If this option is utilized, a state-wide cost-list would be a required deliverable.

APHIS will be considered the subject matter experts for implementing feral swine removal and damage reduction activities. Partners will need to collaborate with APHIS personnel when removal activities are requested by participating landowners. All projects will be a collaborative and coordinated effort between the selected partner, NRCS, and APHIS. It is required that APHIS maintains operational control of feral swine management activities.

Monitoring/Evaluation Requirements of Partner

For this project, partners are expected to monitor project progress both before and after feral swine removal. Initial monitoring and surveys will be conducted to assess the baseline of damage caused by feral swine. Establishing this baseline within the Pilot Area will not only help target efforts but allow evaluation of progress.

Partners are required to collect standardized information for trapping operations in accordance with APHIS procedures. Examples of data collected include trap location, number of pigs trapped, location of nearby resources, etc.

Training Expectations

Education will be essential aspects of the project to ensure landowners are educated on the need for removing feral swine, approved techniques, and methods for controlling feral swine populations. Partners are expected to assist with training and educational activities.

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