Hogs are driving Lincoln County residents mad.

Between rooting up yards, rubbing the bark off of trees, destroying roads and damaging drainage systems, it’s no wonder officials have seen an increase in complaints about wild hogs over the last 20 years.

In a effort to educate Lincoln County on best practices to combat the wild hog problem, the Mississippi State University extension service invited wildlife management extension agent Cliff Covington to speak to residents Tuesday.

Covington will discuss the biology of wild hogs, the best management practices to rid land of them, how to build hog traps and the laws and regulations for wild hogs. He’ll speak at the Lincoln County Library at 6 p.m.

Lincoln County extension agent Rebecca Bates said this will not be the first time Covington has visited Lincoln County to talk about wild hogs.

“We have done three wild hog workshops in Lincoln County over the last five years, trying to inform land owners of the best control practices because the wild hog problem in Lincoln County continues to grow,” Bates said. “Cliff has led several of them.”

According to the MSU wild pig management publication, wild pigs are not native to the Americas, and were brought over from Spain during the 1500s for their highly adaptive and hardy nature.

Wild hogs’ biological and behavioral traits allow them to adapt to any region. They are known as opportunistic omnivores, mostly eating plant matter, worms and insects, but also the occasional small animal.

The number of wild hogs in the United States has increased tremendously over the last 20 years — especially in Mississippi and Lincoln County — mostly due to people transporting them to different areas.

“It is illegal in Mississippi to transport wild hogs,” Bates said. “Mississippi State recommends trapping them and then shooting them. The reason we have a wild hog problem is because of people hunting them. There is no limit when you are hunting them, but it causes them to scatter.”

Trapping wild hogs to eradicate them from a piece of land proves to be a more effective management practice than hunting the hogs, Bates said.

MSU extension service has experimented and created a list of recommended wild hog traps, which are listed in the wild pig management publication, Bates said.

“As far as I know, there are no programs to help land owners catch hogs,” Bates said. “You can make the traps yourself or you can purchase them. Some are so advanced that they can connect with your phone, allowing you to activate the trap doors from an app.”

Types of pig traps are box, cage and corral, and can feature single-catch trap doors or multi-catch trap doors with different trigger mechanisms.

Trapping wild hogs can only be done on private land, according to the Mississippi Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks website.

Landowners who don’t want to trap the wild hogs, but would rather hunt them can do so under certain regulations.

To hunt wild hogs on private land residents must have a valid lifetime, all-game sportsman’s license unless otherwise exempt, according to the MDWFP website. Nonresidents must have a valid nonresident all-game hunting license.

Residents may hunt nuisance animals on private land year-round at any time of day or night with no weapon or caliber restrictions as long as they own or lease the property.

Those planning to hunt wild hogs on public lands should check for specific regulations on the MWFP website.

Bates said the wild hog problem in Lincoln County continues to grow every year, despite the best efforts to eradicate the vermin.

“I get calls every week from people with hog problems,” Bates said. “The majority of the calls I get come from the south end of the county around the rivers.”

District 3 Supervisor Nolan Williamson said his district sees problems caused by wild hogs every day.

“They damage the soil, land, creek bed, tree branches, timber and drainage systems,” Williamson said. “They just cause a bunch of problems.”

Wild hogs can cause agricultural, forest and environmental damage, Bates said.

“I get reports of them causing problems throughout the county to all types of agricultural operations, pasture land, forest land and row crops,” Bates said.

That’s because wild pigs consume and trample crops, and their rooting and wallowing behaviors further damage fields. Rooting and wallowing creates holes and ruts that, if unnoticed, can damage farm equipment and pose a hazard to equipment operators.

To pre-register for the Mississippi State University extension service workshop with Covington, call 601-783-5321.

For more information on wild hogs, stop by the Lincoln County extension office for a free copy of the wild pig management publication or visit MWFP website.