Project Area

The project area includes the counties of Barry, Christian, Douglas, Howell, McDonald, Newton, Ozark, Taney, and Stone, totaling 3,953,287 acres. The project area contains the Missouri Feral Hog Elimination Partnership (MFHP) Elimination Areas 3 (EA3) and 5 (EA5), will encompass the areas currently occupied by feral swine and the areas where ongoing monitoring will continue.

There are 1,151,764 acres in 51 subwatersheds (HUC-12) in EA3 and 1,314,806 acres in 61 subwatersheds in EA5. The entirety of this region is within the Ozark Plateau physiographic province, and within the Springfield and Salem Plateaus. This project is situated entirely in the Ozark Highlands Level III Ecoregion. Agricultural uses are predominately livestock production and forestry in project area. The project area directly adjoins the Arkansas APHIS/NRCS Farm Bill project to the north and is expected to supplement their elimination efforts.

Large ownerships in the project area are comprised of the Mark Twain National Forest; Ava, Cassville Willow Springs Ranger Districts, US Army Corps of Engineers, and the Missouri Department of Conservation are large landowners in the region. Private ownership accounts for roughly 65% of the project area counties. There is 51% and 75% in private land ownership in EA3 and EA5, respectively. The Piney Creek (8,183 acres), Hercules Glade (12,424 acres), and Devil’s Backbone Wilderness Areas (6,691 acres) are located within the project area and are an important National Forest resource, known for their beauty and isolation which have been negatively impacted by the presence of feral swine. There are 15 Missouri Natural Areas in the project area, and 24 threatened and endangered (T&E) animals and 3 T&E plant species.

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Anticipated Partner Activities

All partner activities will be guided by the goals/objectives/strategies of the “Statewide Strategic Plan for Feral Hog Elimination in Missouri” (updated June 2025) as adopted by the MFHEP. Activities would include, but aren’t limited to:

Purchase of equipment and supplies (e.g., traps, cellular trail cameras, cellular service, bait, etc.) to support the ongoing feral swine elimination program in the delineated project area. Equipment will remain property of the partner when the pilot project concludes.
Providing direct assistance to private landowners to protect their property from feral swine damage.
Use of existing partner staff to assist Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) with scouting private and adjacent public lands for feral swine.
Assisting in obtaining permission on private lands where feral swine elimination efforts can take place.
To the extent possible, using existing partner staff to trap and eliminate feral swine, further augmenting the elimination efforts currently underway.
Informing and assisting landowners with opportunities for restoration activities, such as Farm Bill funding, following successful elimination of feral swine from private properties.
Developing media such as articles, newsletters, and other educational materials.
Organizing landowner workshops and activities to facilitate transfer of information concerning feral swine elimination efforts in Missouri.
Maintaining and advertising availability of equipment (total of 7 pieces of equipment in EAs 1 and 2) that can be loaned to landowners for restoration activities following elimination of feral swine on their properties, further incentivizing landowners to cooperate with elimination efforts.
Working with adjoining states, particularly Arkansas and Oklahoma, using collaborative elimination efforts along the state borders when they do not have enough staff to address ongoing feral swine issues.

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, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and APHIS. It is required that APHIS maintains operational control of feral swine management activities.

Monitoring/Evaluation Requirements of Partner

Spatial data for measuring and monitoring the pilot project effect on the feral swine distribution and occupancy of watersheds will be collected from public reports of feral swine activity and from each trapping/removal event location within the pilot project area. Evidence of project effects will be determined by analyzing differences in the total number of quartered watersheds (i.e., subwatersheds or HUC-12) occupied by feral swine after the initiation of direct control operations within the project area. Feral swine watershed occupancy will be monitored and evaluated every 6 months. New technologies and methodologies will be explored to measure success as they become available.

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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