County vows to prevent wild boar attacks

A county in Shaanxi province has pledged to strengthen measures to prevent harm caused by wild animals, with efforts to help enhance the public's self-protection awareness, after two local residents were injured by a wild boar.

The pledge was issued by the forestry bureau of Mianxian county in a statement on Friday, showing its determination to intensify the protection of people's life safety and property rights.

According to the statement, two residents were attacked by a wild boar at around 2 pm on Wednesday, resulting in one sustaining leg injuries and the other suffering from injuries to the face, arms and legs.

The wild boar was shot dead by local police and village officials who quickly arrived at the attack scene, and the two injured were hospitalized immediately, the statements said.

Both injured individuals are receiving treatment in the hospital and are not in life-threatening condition, it added.

Based on monitoring records and visits of local residents, the public security and forestry departments found that the wild boar came down the mountain in search of food that day, and startled by the shouting of residents, it ran into a farmer's yard, causing injuries to people.

While compensating the injured people, the county added that it will enhance public awareness of wildlife prevention knowledge and organize the orderly hunting of wild boars.

It was not the first time that wild boars injured residents. Last year, similar cases occurred in multiple provinces, such as Zhejiang, Henan and Yunnan.

Data released by the National Forestry and Grassland Administration showed that as of 2024, some 2 million wild boars are found in 28 provincial-level regions across China, posing no survival threat. Incidents of wild boars injuring people or damaging properties have been reported in 26 regions.

"In the absence of natural enemies, the only way to control the wild boar population at a reasonable level is through hunting," said Sun Quanhui, a scientist from the World Animal Protection Association.

In June 2023, the administration removed wild boars from the list of "Terrestrial Wildlife with Important Ecological, Scientific and Social Value", eliminating the need for a hunting license to capture them.