Barcelona plagued by hoards of wild boars
Barcelona has been battling an influx of wild boars, with many venturing into the city and digging through bins and even attacking celebrities.
Latin pop star Shakira had to fight off several boars in September while walking in a park with her eight-year-old son. Though she made light of the incident on social media, local experts have taken action to manage the problem, which has been exacerbated by COVID-19 lockdowns.
A wild boar foraging in Molins de Rei, Barcelona in 2020. Image: Getty Images
“So many wild boars in Barcelona, because in this case Barcelona is acting as an ecological sink,” veterinarian Carles Conejero told the BBC.
“It means that the excess of wild boar population, they see Barcelona [as] a suitable environment to disperse.”
City Hall has been trapping the wild animals, then taking samples before killing them humanely.
Though the decision has upset animal rights groups, Carles has said it has become necessary.
“When they are piglets they are so nice and they are not dangerous,” he explained.
“But when they grow and they cause problems, they attack humans [and] dogs or they cause traffic accidents, then [they] are the animals that we need to remove.”
Image: Getty Images