Big Issue: By David Slater of Friends of the Boar
Human consciousness is often perceived to lie totally within the body.
It is my belief, however, that it constantly interacts with its surroundings, whereby each animal, plant and even crystal interacts together in an amazing orchestra lying far beyond the human ear.
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Wild boar piglets wander happily in the Forest of Dean picture: David Slater
Modern culture has separated us from this ancient knowledge. Indigenous people know they belong to a larger story, and create what appear to us to be childish superstitious myths about their world and its origin.
As a nature photographer I've travelled to many rainforests of the world and I see their beliefs are based upon real perceptions and knowing. The one tangible thing they know about the forest is peace.
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We in the West are so accustomed to stress it's hard to imagine a state of peace. Animals live in the "now" without stress until forced to hunt or flee. In contrast, our lives have been so marketed that many of us cannot awaken and see this pervasive peace that is the beauty of nature. We live in perpetual stress that leads to dis-ease (disease) within us. So much so that many modern ailments such as attention deficit disorder are in fact relieved by contact with nature. This disease may instead be a "nature deficit disorder", just like others.
I'm lucky. I've a remarkable forest and heritage on my doorstep in the Forest of Dean where I can get a daily fix of healing and connection. People without connection and purpose tend to go to war. How wonderful if we could all sense the prospective power of the Forest? It is the forest that our ancestors used as an ally in their healing, be it herbs that cured or the silence that made them look inwards.
Unconsciously I feel part of something larger, as the Forest heals by putting me at ease, and with this presence of mind I see clearly what is happening in physical space too. Indeed, the Forest is slowly healing itself from traumas that some have inflicted, and I wonder if we can now help each other along?
Is it the restoration of a deep sense of wholeness that not just I had lost in my teens, but society around me seems to have lost too? Some still see the Forest as a dark place full of beasts. Others may see conifers sterilising the landscape, or a place of weird laws allowing a few to hunt for their own pleasure. These are cultural snapshots of how we have been constantly manipulated away from the true essence of the Forest.
I'm a scientist and I mourn that science often fails us. It observes nature as outside us. Science often claims that disease is not our fault and externalised, so take this drug and make someone rich please. Science disconnects you from any inner ability to heal. Science is often another propaganda tool used by manipulators, be it the church, state or big business. They ignore that a healthy ecosystem means healthy humans. The implementation costs money.
The result loses money. It requires a will power hard to muster, for these same profiteers have overworked us and dumbed us down to the point we no longer notice we are slaves.
As our Forest evolves it also heals; so it has called back one of its icons. Nothing symbolises the Forest more than wild boar. It's a Celtic totem and a Shamanic power animal. Often associated with the feminine power of protection, it is rooted in our collective psyche. Many cultures see the boar as a protector of the Forest – and so should we. We lived alongside wild boar in the Ice Age, learning from each other to such an extent that religions began to forbid the eating of them as if it were an act of cannibalism.
But the trusting human condition allows the less moral to lead us by the nose, unwittingly succumbing to their dirty gospel. Their new God called money seems to offer all sorts of reasons to kill the wild boar and other animals, yet none of it is for your financial interests, is it?
Corporate man thinks it acceptable to kill if it makes money. How distorted a view of nature can you have? For so long as man massacres animals he cannot reap the joy of love, and in my opinion, it leads to a psychopathic lack of interest in humans too.
No, I can no longer be told truth by men, for the Forest shows me truth. The wild boar is here because it's their forest as much as mine. They behave according to natural law: live in harmony with your neighbour, eat only what you need, and procreate according to what your environment can support. They surely may be allowed to "damage" road verges as much as our road has damaged the Forest in the first place?
This is where I think we are with the future of the wild boar. On the one side is the Forestry Commission. An institution created by politics to manage your land using your money. And they wish to shoot boar.
They seem unable to awaken. They garner support using hunting myths. They kill wild boar hoping to appease the farming sector at least, because our politicians are coerced to support this business for financial gain. Yes, they ostracise the "soul" from daily life. "Go back to sleep, we know it doesn't make sense but it does make money."
On the other side there are people like me. I see amazing creations with beating hearts and minds.
Only our unique planet could have such miracles. I give gratitude each day.
The wild boar are so in tune with us, having shared a long history both in evolved spirit and in the flesh, that to know that any human is so manipulated by their toxic masters that they abuse them, is something I will fight against forever.
Comments
by FOTBoar
Tuesday, September 18 2012, 9:02AM
“t's good to know that you are doing some reading TimMessanger. Your comments to date appear offensive and knee-jerk.
We hope you study the Alladale project or the work of Leaper et al (Mammal Review Vol 29, p239-259, 1999) for example. Then you will see that reintroductions are very feasible given the right habitat.
Friends of the Boar have all the cull data for the FC from 2008 -2011. Piglet have stripes. They loose these when they are about 40kg in weight. 77% of boar shot to date have been less than 40kg.
Piglets do not go to meat traders but are sold directly by the FC. We know this because we have asked the FC about it, and that was their answer.
Once again, in the Forest of Dean boar numbers will not be controlled by predation (wolf or man). And by the way, scientific studies on predation of boar show that wolves may account for just 12% mortality. This is insignificant, as the authors of this study in conclude (Nores, llaneza and Alvarez,(Wildl Biol 14, p44-51, 2008). In the Forest of Dean, we have witnessed piglet numbers decrease by 50% in just 2 months, presumably by disease, accidents or starvation.
Yes, starvation may occur in piglets unable to forage properly, or due to competition between piglets. This is, as you say, a natural and maybe a brutal aspect of nature. We accept this, as do most people who know something about nature.
Shopoting boar for profit or fun as you would wish is both immoral and scientifically unsupported at this present time.”
by TimMessanger
Sunday, September 16 2012, 12:22PM
“Here is some research on the introduction of wild boar into an eco system and the pros and cons of said introduction.”
by TimMessanger
Saturday, September 15 2012, 12:56PM
“What size are the piglets you are talking about, oh yes you have no idea do you! The ones I've seen have ALL been about 6 month old and make dammed good eating.
I would suspect that you are one of the Badger, Boar Tree Huggers by the way that you say that everyone with a differing opinion to your own is wrong "absolutely no idea what they are talking about and merely pretend to be experts" may very well apply to yourself.
As I said the only thing that will keep the populations in check is either starvation or predation, what would you have?
Answer the question please or are you not willing to make a fool of yourself?”
by FOTBoar
Thursday, September 13 2012, 9:42PM
“Yes, they regulate their own numbers in any given area. The density remains the same according to climate, shelter and food availability.
People who believe that the Forest of Dean would be overrun by boar if no culling were to happen should consider these facts:
According to the FC there were 60 boar released in 2004. In 2009 the FC recommended to the council that 90 boar existed, and that should be a number to cull to. Up until that recommendation, only 40-50 boar had been shot from mid 2008-mid 2009.
In 5 years, the boar population had risen from 60 to 140. The Forest is capable of sustaining about 200-250 boar without artificial feeding. If fed well, the density may double. Feeding in 2009 -2010 was done solely by Defra and the FC. Huge quantities of cereals and deer carcasses were put down to both lure boar to rifles and to devices in a 2 yr study inot contraception.
After this study, boar numbers fluorished with a huge percentage of the numbers being piglets.
Feeding makes piglets and mums fit and resistant to disease. Shooting piglets, which is what the FC were doing (77% of all boar killed have been humbugs) makes sows come into season again. The FC carried on killing piglets, as these could be sold directly by the FC and at the same time fulfil there cll quota.
Hunting does more damage than good, unless you wish to farm the boar (or any mammal, including humans) for profit or sport.
From Sept 2011to 2012 no culling took place in the Dean. Grass damage as reduced, boar sightings are down. The FC admited in Spet 2011 at the start ofthe cull that 600 boar were present between June and Spet 2011 (153 culled plus 450 left). Today, they are claiming 600 boar are present.
Of course, the FC have absolutely no idea what they are talking about and merely pretend to be experts. They shift their arguments to promote needless killing for profit. They will never quote science to support their wild guesses of boar population in the Dean, merely referring to their own in-house and undisclosed research. They sell to meat traders and sell directly themselves to the public (mainly piglets). They are motivated by money not ecology nor public perception nor worries about numbers.
David Slater has ben a professional wildlife photographer for 12 yrs. A doctorate in earth sciences and 6 yrs as an academic research scientist for both university and government projects. Founder of Friends of the Boar, he has written and co-authored articles on wild boar for magazines and newspapers such as BBC Wildlife and The Independent. Worked for NGOs in several rainforests around the world, helping research scientists with biodiversity and population surveys. One of the foremost boar photographers in the UK, he has researched them first hand almost daily for 7 years.”
by TimMessanger
Thursday, September 13 2012, 11:09AM
“"As a nature photographer" or "I'm a scientist" what are you and qualifications do you have?
I only eat what I need, and I need roast wild boar, people have some miss-given idea what a wild boar is, it's a pig and should be eaten. They WILL "procreate" until there is insufficient food to support further population so some will STARVE each winter or there is some form of predation, as there is no natural predation in the area then the solution would be either hunt them for food (cull or shoot in you words) or re introduce a top level predator (canis lupus lupus) into the area and make sure the farmers can't shoot them for also killing their live stock!
I'm sick to death of the don't cull them brigade with some miss-given idea if what they think the countryside should be like rather than the reality where things die and are killed.
So David Slater what would YOU do to keep the wild boar numbers in check don't just say they will regulate their own numbers because that isn't going to happen!”