KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Shooting feral hogs on lands managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Kansas City District is prohibited under Title 36 special restriction. In addition, it is prohibited under Missouri Department of Conservation regulations on lands they own or manage, including corps' lands.
The Kansas City District reminds visitors to "Report – Don’t Shoot" feral hogs observed at Stockton and Harry S. Truman lakes in Missouri. With the recreation season well underway, more project visitors are enjoying the public lands surrounding these lake projects and visitor cooperation is essential in the corps’ efforts to eradicate this extremely damaging pest.
"Feral hogs do extensive damage to native vegetation which provides critical wildlife habitat on our project lands," Larry Smith, Natural Resource Management Specialist at Harry S. Truman Lake said. "The Kansas City District is a member of the Missouri Feral Hog Partnership, comprised of multiple resource agencies and private land owners. This partnership is led by MDC and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, whose goal is to eradicate feral hogs from Missouri."
David Hoover, Conservation Biologist explained, "We’ve had isolated problems with feral hogs in other states. Working with our federal, state and local partners we were able to eradicate these populations before they became well established. We hope to do the same working with our partners in Missouri.
"Hunting has never been found to be an effective method to remove feral hogs and basically promotes a hog hunting culture at the expense of our native plants and wildlife, said Smith. "At Truman and Stockton lakes we work cooperatively with MDC and APHIS on trapping efforts to eradicate feral hogs."
"To be successful, we need the cooperation of the public in reporting feral hogs and refraining from shooting feral hogs on corps’ lands which interferes with agency trapping activities and further distributes them across the landscape," informs Hoover. "When it comes to feral hogs remember, ‘Report-Don’t Shoot’".
To report a feral hog sighting in Missouri call 573-522-4115, extension 3296 or online at: https://mdc.mo.gov/wildlife/nuisance-problem-species/invasive-species/feral-hogs-missouri . For further information concerning feral hogs on corps public lands, contact the Kansas City District’s conservation biologist at (816) 389-3497.
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