By:
Mark Tyson, M.S., Extension Associate
Dan Gaskins, B.S., Extension Assistant
When afield during the fall one
can’t help but notice the abundance of hard mast (walnuts, pecans and acorns)
that can be found in hardwood bottoms and oak thickets. Texas is famous for
live oak thickets in the hill country, post oak savannahs, and hardwood river
bottoms. Even the state tree, pecan (Carya
illinoinensis), is a mast producer. Seeing so much mast on the landscape
can lead one to wonder how much mast is really out there. In his book, Trees of East Texas, Robert Vines
presents forty-three hard mast producing trees that can be found in the eastern
half of the state. Knowing these trees,
their timing of mast production, and how this affects your trapping efforts
will help you to become more successful and efficient.
(A
hardwood river bottom in central Texas. Photo by: Mark Tyson)
Feral hogs are quick to locate and
utilize new food resources on the landscape. They are considered opportunistic
omnivores, meaning they take advantage of whatever food source is available to
them. Taylor and Hellgren (1997) studied feral hog diets in the western south
Texas plains and found that their diets varied seasonally and changed with food
availability. Other researchers in semi-arid environments observed similar
results (Barrett 1978, Baber and Coblentz 1987). This opportunistic feeding
behavior exhibited by feral hogs takes place across their distribution. So how
does this relate to hard mast, and what does any of this have to do with feral
hog trapping?
The use of shelled corn as a bait
for trapping feral hogs is quite common, it has been referred to as the “gold
standard” of feral hog baits. A time may come when the hogs quit responding to
corn at a trap site and that may leave you puzzled as to what happened. When
this happens, always think food first, by that we mean evaluate what food
resources are currently available on the landscape. Most notably in the fall
when this happens hard mast may be the culprit as acorns and nuts ripen and
fall in the late summer and persist into midwinter. A variety of other factors
may be to blame for this shift in behavior, but feeding and thermoregulation
are two of the primary objectives of feral hogs so look to them first. Also,
many crops are ready for harvest at this time, providing an extensive potential
food source depending on your location.
(Feral
hogs at a pre-baiting site in west Texas. Photo by: Mark Tyson)
Hard mast production can be a boom
or bust situation. Goodrum et al. (1971) suggest that mast production is a
function of the age and size of trees, inherent tree characteristics, canopy
cover, stem density, competition and climate in a specific location. Mast
production in certain years could throw trapping efforts into the midst a
proverbial “storm” of hard mast on the landscape. Watch out for these heavy
mast crops in years with more rain than usual and in years of extreme drought.
Many tree species will actually produce a large seed crop in a drought in an
attempt to ensure the survival of the species. Many of the tree species that
produce hard mast are fairly common and familiar to many Texans. See below for
a guide to the trees to watch. During these “storms” feral hogs will most
likely shift their foraging efforts to hard mast. Yet don’t lose hope, in time
the storm will calm and the advantage will shift in your favor! In the midst of
the “storm” is when to take action, make an effort to collect and store up as
much hard mast as possible. Then you are ready for when the “calm” finally
occurs.
(A
central Texas live oak tree with acorns. Photo by: Mark Tyson)
The “calm” or absence of mast on
the landscape typically occurs in late winter. During the late winter months,
feral hogs will relish hard mast even more, now that it is scarce! During this
time period bait traps with hard mast, sit back and watch amazing things
happen. The specific timing of the “calm” will vary by both locality and year.
In learning how to trap during the “calm” your results will be much more exciting
than you could believe.
(Feral hogs captured
in a corral trap. Photo by: Dr. Billy Higginbotham)
There are quite a few trees in Texas that produce hard mast.
The Texas A&M Forest Service has a website called Trees of Texas that can aid you in
identifying your trees. Texas is home to dozens of species of oak, most of
which produce acorns that can be utilized for mast by feral hogs. Below are the
most common species with links to the Virginia Tech fact sheet about the
species. Keep an eye on these trees as they will have the biggest impact on
your trapping efforts. Note that most of
the trees on this list are oaks, and there are many oaks not listed.
Water
hickory (Carya aquatica)
Pecan
(Carya illinoinensis)
Texas
live oak (Quercus fusiformis)
Live
oak (Quercus virginiana)
Shumard
oak (Quercus shumardii)
Cherrybark
oak (Quercus pagoda)
Blackjack
oak (Quercus marilandica)
Post
oak (Quercus stellata)
Water
oak (Quercus nigra)
Willow
oak (Quercus phellos)
Southern
red oak (Quercus falcata)
Black
walnut (Juglans nigra)
The hyper-linked resource document below will provide you with quick access to many of our online feral hog resources including publications, fact sheets and videos.
The hyper-linked resource document below will provide you with quick access to many of our online feral hog resources including publications, fact sheets and videos.
For free educational
programming or technical assistance with feral hogs please contact us:
Mark Tyson,
South and Southeast Texas, 979-845-4698, mark.tyson@ag.tamu.edu
Dan Gaskins,
Central and North Central Texas, 254-248-0532, dan.gaskins@tamu.edu
Our services
are provided free of charge through a Clean Water Act 319(h) non-point sources
grant from the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board and the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency
Literature Cited
Baber, D.W.,
and B.E. Coblentz. 1987. Diet, nutrition, and conception of feral pigs
on Santa Catalina
Island. Journal of Wildlife Management 51:306-317.
Barrett, R.H.
1978. The feral hog at Dye Creek
Ranch, California. Hilgardia 46:283-355.
Taylor,
R.B., and E.C. Hellgren. 1997. Diet of feral hogs in the western south Texas
plains. Southwestern
Naturalist 42:33-39.