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Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Abstract

Feral swine (Sus scrofa) in the United States have become a growing concern, with a population of ≥6 million and causing annual damages of ≥$1.5 billion USD. Because of their high reproductive capacity, effective control methods are crucial to reducing or slowing their population growth. While remotely monitored and triggered traps have proven to be an effective control strategy, the cost of sophisticated trapping equipment, which can cost ≥$7,000 USD, is often cost prohibitive for many landowners. Despite the pressing need to address the challenge of making effective feral swine control methods more affordable, there are few studies that have evaluated cooperative solutions to make feral swine control more affordable and effective. Therefore, this research explores the feasibility and cost-effectiveness of implementing cooperatives to share the costs of feral swine trapping equipment. Our findings demonstrate potential cost savings of ≥42% compared to the market rate, which could result in an annual saving of $64,827 USD, which would be passed on to the member-users through the cooperative structure. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis indicated that the feral swine disposal value, trapping season duration, and number of feral swine captured per trap set were key factors in determining cost-effectiveness. This study highlights the importance of collaborative approaches to control the increasing feral swine population, emphasizing the potential for significant economic benefits through cooperative solutions such as sharing of trapping equipment.

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