Wild Boar are roaming the New Forest, says Commoners Defence Association chair Andrew Parry-Norton, as Born Free charity classifies them as ‘dangerous’
EVIDENCE that wild boar are roaming the New Forest has been revealed amid an animal charity categorising them as “dangerous”.
Both Forestry England and the national park authority have claimed there are no wild boar loose in the Forest.
But Andrew Parry-Norton, chair of the Commoners Defence Association, told the A&T: “I have personally come across damage a wild boar has done in the Forest.
“There is evidence they are free roaming in it, particularly in the north around the Copythorne area.
“About three years ago a farmer there shot dead a wild boar that was on his land, to protect his animals.”
Charity Born Free has released research that in 2023 more than 2,700 “dangerous” wild animals were being kept privately in the UK under licences permitted by the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976.
Among these, 133 wild boar were being kept in the New Forest under licence. In Dorset there were two spectacled caiman.
But Mr Parry-Norton said he believed there were also unlicensed wild boar living in the Forest.
As a farmer and commoner, he warned that anyone coming across one should “give it a very wide berth”.
He said: “Do not go anywhere near them and make sure your dog doesn’t either.
“If cornered they can be very dangerous, especially if it is a sow with her young as they are very protective.
“They have pretty large teeth; they can shift quite a lot of turf over a pretty large area.
“They also can spread diseases so they are definitely something that should be avoided. Although it is unlikely someone will come across one in the Forest as they are very shy creatures, and normally hide away.”
In 2018 a dog walker in the Forest of Dean had his finger bitten off by a wild boar, while in 2022 farmers in Scotland said they watched three of the animals attack and pull apart a ewe.
Mr Parry-Norton said the wild boar could have come from the Forest of Dean “where they are causing terrible trouble”.
He said: “They have spread out from there, so that could be how they came to be in the Forest.”
There was a wild boar farm in Bramshaw which has now closed, but Mr Parry-Norton said it was unlikely those in the Forest came from there: “There are very strict regulations that have to be adhered to to prevent the animals escaping.
“I definitely don’t think they came from the farm.”
He said that when wild boar were hunted there were “stories of people being killed, or badly injured by them”.
According to Forestry England “common tell-tale sign” of wild boar is footprints – the animals have feet wider at the front with two dew claws at the back.
Wild boar will wallow in mud to control their temperature and rid their hair of parasites. Afterwards they will rub themselves up against things so it says to “keep an eye out for muddy tree bases”.
The FE also says a large area of disturbed ground can also be evidence of wild boar.
It warns that the animals can be “very large and strong” and “can move surprisingly fast for their size”.
The FE says wild boar should be “treated with caution and respect”.
Native wild boar became extinct in the UK in the 13th century due to over-hunting and loss of habitat.
But during the 1980s farmers began importing them from mainland Europe for their meat. A few escapees have seen the re-establishment of wild populations in both England and Scotland.
Dangerous wild animals in Dorset and Hampshire:
Dorset
• Spectacled caiman: 2
East Hampshire
• Eurasian lynx: 2
• Margarita Island capuchin: 2
Gosport
• Dwarf caiman: 1
Havant
• West African dwarf crocodile: 1
• Chinese alligator: 37
New Forest
• Wild boar: 133
Portsmouth
• White-lipped viper: 1
• Western diamond back rattlesnake: 1
• Suphan cobra: 2
Rushmoor
• Przewalski’s horse: 4
Winchester
• Eurasian lynx: 2
• Gila monster: 2
• West African dwarf crocodile: 1
