Testing Different Deterrents as Candidates for Short-Term Reduction in Wild Boar Contacts—A Pilot Study

SIMPLE SUMMARY: African swine fever is an important pig disease currently present in the wild boar population, in particular in parts of Europe, with occasional introductions into domestic pig farms. Lately, the first cases were detected in wild boar in Eastern Germany. The presence of the disease dramatically affects the chances of a country to participate in international trade with pigs and products thereof. Limiting disease spread with the goal of eventual eradication is therefore of paramount importance. Carcasses of wild boar that succumbed to African swine fever represent an important source of infection and support the perpetuation of the infection cycle. Hence, timely removal of carcasses from the environment in infected areas is an important disease control measure but is sometimes difficult due to logistic limitations—e.g., in forests or thickets. Deterring wild boar from carcasses may therefore constitute an interim solution. We aimed at identifying suitable deterrence strategies and found that certain chemical and physical deterrents seem to deter wild boar, to some extent, are easy to apply and may thus contribute to disease control. In depth investigation of the deterrence effect of the promising deterrent candidates identified in this pilot study should be considered. ABSTRACT: African swine fever (ASF) is a viral infection of pigs and represents a major threat to animal health and trade. Due to the high tenacity of the causative virus in carcasses of wild boar, contacts of wild boar with infectious carcasses are regarded an important driver of the so-called habitat cycle. The latter is believed to play a major role in maintaining the present ASF situation in wild boar in Europe. Therefore, search campaigns and timely removal and disposal of carcasses are considered important disease control approaches. If timely disposal is not feasible due to logistic reasons, deterrence of wild boar may be a provisionary option. The performance of seven deterrents (physical and chemical) was tested in a forest near Greifswald, Germany. Carcasses as entities of attraction for wild boar were substituted by luring sites. It could be demonstrated in this pilot study that certain physical (LED blinkers, aluminum strips) and chemical (HAGOPUR Wildschwein-Stopp™, Hukinol™) deterrents are capable of reducing the odds of wild boar contacts to one third, but in depth testing of the aforementioned promising deterrent candidates is recommended. A choice of those deterrents identified as suitable, reasonable, and easy to apply should be carried out, when carcass search campaigns are launched in the case of an outbreak of ASF in wild boar.