By Linda Hall • Published: 03 Mar 2019 • 19:15
CHAMPION archer Manuel Vazquez has offered to rid Lugo of the wild boar that have invaded the city.
Vazquez and a group of archery enthusiasts who await notification to carry out a cull for the Xunta, Galicia’s regional government, warn that the boar population will increase.
“Sows now come into season twice a year owing to climate change, producing five piglets each time,” Vazquez said. “As they wage war on them in rural areas, there has been an exodus to the city where no-one shoots them.”
Manuel Vazquez estimates that at least 28 wild boar roam Lugo’s central streets at night as well as the city’s industrial estate, the hospital grounds and the banks of the River Rato.
Official complaints also reveal that each day in Galicia boar are involved in four road accidents and spoil farmland and pastures.
Environment department plans include clearing undergrowth and placing traps – which they want to keep secret – in urban locations. Archers could also receive permission to shoot the boar although Vazquez claims this has not yet arrived and they will probably be called on only if the traps aren’t successful.
Animal protection groups are complaining that the agreement between the Xunta, Lugo city hall, the police and the Hunting Federation “lacks transparency.”
Night hunts could be violating regional laws, they claim, as they should take place only in “untenable situations” and, they claim, there is no precise proof that this applies to Lugo.
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Originally from the UK, Linda is based in Valenca and is a reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering local news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com.
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