California sends in guns to slaughter 3,000 pigs - and restore island's na [View All]

[emad]

Dan Glaister on Santa Cruz island
Saturday April 30, 2005
The Guardian

Santa Cruz, a beautiful microcosm of southern California lying 19 miles off the coast, boasts numerous unique species, a lot of oak trees, a few indigenous foxes and too much fennel. And thousands of pigs.

But the pigs are in trouble. It comes in the form of Norm Macdonald, a stocky, soft-spoken New Zealander with a helicopter and a lot of guns.

Over the next two years Mr Macdonald and six colleagues from his company Prohunt will devote their every waking hour to shooting pigs. The aim is to rid the island of feral pigs that have wreaked havoc in the past 150 years.

Since farming stopped on the island and the pigs have roamed free, they've rooted around in the soil, disrupting the growth of the natural habitat and promoting the spread of wild fennel; they've eaten the acorns; they've destroyed ancient Native American archaeological sites; and they've provided sustenance for golden eagles.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1473781,00.html